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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/23422219">Fanning the Flames of Heroic Turmoil</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/XXPadfootXX/pseuds/XXPadfootXX'>XXPadfootXX</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>The Dragon Academia Chronicles [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>How to Train Your Dragon (Movies), 僕のヒーローアカデミア | Boku no Hero Academia | My Hero Academia</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Bonding, Certain Depictions of Violence, Dakota seriously needs help, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Friendship, Izuku is a hopeless cinnamon roll, May Change Rating Depends on How This Goes, Midoriya Izuku Needs A Hug, Modern AU, Part 2 of Night Terrors &amp; New Beginnings, Partial Mind Control, Referenced Other Ships, Why do I do this to my poor characters?</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-04-01</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-08-20</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-01 09:41:17</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>4</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>26,831</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/23422219</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/XXPadfootXX/pseuds/XXPadfootXX</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>[THIS IS A PART 2 OF NIGHT TERRORS &amp; NEW BEGINNINGS]</p>
<p>Despite Izuku’s hero training interfering with with their progress, Izuku &amp; Dakota have slowly grown closer over time, their bond strengthening and their friendship developing into more than just a boy and his pet. Izuku and Dakota are ready for anything. They have each other and that’s all that matters... but will it be enough? Or will some revealed secrets about Dakota’s past and her connection to some of the world’s most dangerous villains tear their bond up from the seams?</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Midoriya Izuku/Uraraka Ochako</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>The Dragon Academia Chronicles [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1429465</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>35</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>52</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Words Hurt More Than Spikes</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Here is the part 2 to Night Terrors &amp; New Beginnings (finally)! Thank y’all for your patience and continued support, I love and appreciate all of you so much! Please stay safe and try not to die of boredom this quarantine. Lots more content coming soon! I’ve got some fun WIPs planned and outlined for y’all! Have an amazing day everyone! See u on my next post!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Izuku laid back and crossed his arms underneath his head, closing his eyes as the sun warmed his face and the grass brushed against his arms. He sighed, finally allowing his body to relax after the grueling past few weeks he had put himself through in order to perform his best at the Sports Festival. Although he loved being around Dakota, he had forced himself to stay away from her during the Sports Festival, not wanting to either overwork himself nor be distracted while he prepared to display his talents to any pro-heros who were willing to take him on as an intern. Dakota told him she understood completely and had left him alone, remaining in the dragon sanctuary but he had felt her slightly melancholy mood when he saw her for the last time before the festival. Now that the festival was over, Izuku had taken the first train to the sanctuary, his heart desperate to see his best friend again. Almost immediately upon walking into the sanctuary and seeing all of the dragons living peacefully behind Fumihiros’ cottage, Izuku had felt himself relax, the calming aura of the place allowing the tension to melt from his muscles. Izuku peeked one eye open when he felt a movement beside him. </p>
<p>    “Gods, I feel like I’ve broken every bone in my body,” Ochako said with a groan, laying down on the soft grass beside Izuku.</p>
<p>    “I agree with you on that one,” Izuku said with a chuckle.</p>
<p>    “Oh! Deku, I’m sorry I totally forgot!” Ochako said, turning to him with her face red with embarrassment. She had forgotten that Izuku really had broken his bones in the tournament.</p>
<p>    “Don’t worry about it,” Izuku said with a warm smile. He had only been teasing her.</p>
<p>    “Are we not going to go find our dragons?” Ochako asked after a short moment of silence.</p>
<p>    Izuku smiled when she said ‘our’ dragons. He had been so afraid in the beginning that Ochako would reject him as a friend when she found out about Dakota. When he had knocked on her door all those weeks ago to recruit her for her help in rescuing the captured dragons, he had expected her to never speak to him again, even if she did decide to help him. The exact opposite had ensued, Ochako becoming closer to him than anyone ever had been before, aside from his own family. She came with him every time he went to the dragon sanctuary, her smile bright and her eyes wide if not a little cautious, eager to learn.</p>
<p>    “I just told Dakota we were here,” Izuku said, glancing back up at the sky. “She didn’t respond but I know she heard me so we can just relax here until they show up.”</p>
<p>    When Ochako didn’t say anything in response, Izuku glanced over to find her watching him, her eyes glimmering in wonder.</p>
<p>    “What?” Izuku asked nervously, his face turning red under her stare and his eyes darting away from her gaze.</p>
<p>    “Oh sorry!” Ochako said, snapping out of her haze. “I just still think it's so cool how you’re able to communicate with her. I have to admit, when you first did it, it kind of freaked me out a little. But now that I’ve seen you do it more often, I find it so cool!”</p>
<p>    “Oh, yeah,” Izuku said warmly, his face getting somehow even more red from her praise. “I’m still getting used to it even though it's been so long since we first bonded. I’m starting to get the hang of it now though! It helps to know that Dakota is just as new to this as I am.”</p>
<p>    “Damn right, half of the time I have no idea what to do or how to respond,” a voice suddenly said through the bond, making Izuku jolt in place.</p>
<p>    “Deku, are you okay?”</p>
<p>    “Yeah, Dakota just talked to me and I wasn’t expecting it.”</p>
<p>    “Dakota spoke to you? Where is she?”</p>
<p>    “Right above you,” Dakota said through the bond, making Izuku smile and look up. There, sitting in the branches of the tree right above the pair was both Dakota and Legoshi, their wings still spread slightly, signalling they had just landed.</p>
<p>    Ochako followed Izuku’s eyes and smiled brightly when she saw her winged friends, moving to rest on her elbows to get a better look at them. With roars of joy above them, Dakota and Legoshi raised their wings and leaped from the branches, gliding down to their respective riders. Ochako stood and met Legoshi once he landed on the ground, her arms out to encompass his neck in a hug. Legoshi purred and reached his neck around her back to nuzzle her affectionately, her whole body surrounded by him.</p>
<p>    Izuku leaped up and met with Dakota before she even landed completely on the ground, her wings still beating a little when he jumped up to wrap his arms around her. As soon as he saw her his heart had jumped into his throat like a rabbit, beating steadily and filling him with an overwhelming sense of love he hadn’t expected.</p>
<p>    “I missed you too,” Dakota chuckled down the bond as she landed on her back legs but kept her front legs reared into the air to encompass Izuku in a hug of her own. Izuku squeezed her harder in response. When they finally parted, they turned to see Ochako had already made herself at home curled up against Legoshi’s body, his tail coiled around her protectively. Assuming the same position, Dakota laid down on the soft grass and curled her tail around Izuku as he settled down against her side with a sigh.</p>
<p>    “Gods, I missed this,” Ochako whispered.</p>
<p>    “Me too,” Izuku said, leaning back even further into Dakota’s warm scales.</p>
<p>    “You two seem tired,” Dakota growled down the bond, her striking blue eyes revealing her concern and her tail tightening its hold across Izuku’s lap.</p>
<p>    “Yeah,” Izuku said. “We are pretty tired, but even with the hard work and the stress, the festival was really fun.”</p>
<p>    “It was really fun,” Ochako agreed, using context clues to figure out what Dakota had said. “Well, the last round with the one on one fights was hard, I was up against Bakugo which kind of put a damper on the fun part of the festival, but I learned a lot and I was happy he didn’t go easy on me.”</p>
<p>    “Oh yeah, Ochako was amazing, you should’ve seen her!” Izuku said, not noticing the blush that immediately bloomed on Ochako’s face at his words. “I offered to help her but she didn’t need it, she had this fantastic plan where she used the power of Kacchan’s blasts against him, floating the debris around her to create this amazing meteor shower! She would’ve won if it weren’t for the fact that Kacchan had at least one more giant blast in him. She was so fantastic though, I wish you could’ve seen her!” Izuku suddenly stopped when he realized he was rambling and placed his hands over his mouth, glancing at Ochako apologetically. She shook her head at his apology, her bangs swinging in front of her face.</p>
<p>    “Thanks Deku, you were amazing too! He had a difficult opponent as well. He actually made it through two rounds before losing. The first round was against a kid with a mind control quirk, but he managed to break free of it and send the kid out of bounds! He didn’t lose until he was put up against Todoroki, but that was only because instead of taking over Todoroki’s weak spot like he was supposed to, he helped him through some tough issues he had with himself and brought out his full potential.”</p>
<p>    Now it was Deku’s turn to blush as she boasted about him, her eyes sparkling as she recounted both fateful battles.</p>
<p>    “Yeah, he tends to see the best in those who may not always deserve it,” Dakota said down the bond, shifting her wings uncomfortably. “That’s what makes him so deserving of the title ‘hero’, though.”</p>
<p>    Izuku glanced up at his dragon in shock not only at the blatant compliment in her words, but also at the sly jab she had aimed at herself, but her head was turned away, her eyes purposely looking elsewhere.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>    “What did she say?” Ochako asked.</p>
<p>    “She just said that she thought I was worthy of being a hero because of my faith in people,” Izuku said, his heart warming as he mulled the compliment over in his mind.</p>
<p>    “Well she is damn right,” Ochako said, the words slipping out of her mouth before she could stop them. Slapping a palm over her mouth she looked to see Izuku looking at her with a surprised, warm look on his face. She smiled at him, still flustered she had let that slip. Grasping for a change in subject that could dissipate the tension in the air, her mind landed on their friend Iida.</p>
<p>    “Hey Deku, did something seem off about Iida after his phone call with his family after the Sports Festival? I feel like he received some bad news but he wasn’t saying anything.”</p>
<p>    “Actually, I’ve been thinking about Iida ever since he came out of the locker room that day. And did you see what he put down for his internship choice? He picked one in Hosu, where all of the attacks from the Hero Killer have been happening.”</p>
<p>    “Hero Killer?” Dakota asked.</p>
<p>    “Yeah, the Hero Killer, also known as Stain, is a villain who believes that the heroing system is corrupt and full of fake heroes. He tried to protest and spread his beliefs through rallies and riots but when he got shut down he turned to crime, murdering heroes he believed to be unworthy of their title,” Izuku explained. “Dakota asked,” He said, in response to Ochako’s questioning stare.</p>
<p>    “The most recent attack was in Hosu,” Ochako said, picking up where Izuku left off in his explanation. “He killed a few heroes down there and then disappeared, but the authorities are guessing he will be back in Hosu soon, should he follow the pattern he has almost always followed in his past killing sprees.”</p>
<p>    Dakota grunted and looked out over the sanctuary, her eyes roving over the relaxing dragons. She watched as Jack walked out of the small cottage and made his way over to Sasori, his handsome Triple Strike, holding out some fish for his best friend.</p>
<p>    “Izuku?” Dakota asked in a soft whisper down the bond.</p>
<p>    “Yes?” Izuku also responded down the bond, taking her soft tone as a hint that she wanted to talk to him in private.</p>
<p>    “Please keep each other safe and don’t die. You and Uraraka are both very strong individuals but when you are together, you make a formidable team. Even so, watch each other's backs. I never want to feel the agony of seeing Haruka or Fumihiro walk through those doors with nothing but tears and regret.”</p>
<p>    Izuku looked up at his dragon in shock for the second time during their interaction but was met with Dakota’s genuine, striking gaze rather than the back of her head. Her eyes were swimming with suppressed emotion and her tail fins were flicking anxiously against Izuku’s legs. Tears bubbled up under Izuku’s eyelids and overflowed onto his cheeks, leaving clear steaks on his soft skin.</p>
<p>    “Deku? Is something wrong?”</p>
<p>    Izuku rubbed his face with the sleeve of his shirt. He was so grateful for all of his friends but right now, Ochako and Dakota seemed to be the two individuals in the world who understood him the most. Dakota was direct and bold but kind and sensitive thanks to her troubling past. Ochako was patient and never seemed frustrated or jealous over Izuku’s bond with Dakota, always waiting patiently for him to fill her in and respecting his decisions when he decided not to share the information with her.</p>
<p>    “No, I’m alright Ochako,” Izuku said calmly, the tears finally drying from his eyes. “Dakota just told me that we need to take care of each other. She knows we are going to help Iida but she cares about us and wants us to use our strength as a team to keep each other safe.”</p>
<p>    Ochako stared at Dakota for a moment, her determined chocolate brown eyes meeting Dakota’s searing blue gaze without fear.</p>
<p>    “I can do that,” Ochako said, reaching up with a soft palm to pat Dakota’s nose. Dakota purred and nuzzled Ochako affectionately.</p>
<p>    “I can do that too,” Izuku said, his eyes coming to rest on Ochako as he made his promise, his heart hardening against the idea of her getting hurt.</p>
<p>    “Good,” Dakota said down the bond, which Izuku repeated to Ochako, before laying her head down on the soft grass beside Izuku, allowing sleep to overtake her in the warm afternoon sun. Legoshi soon followed suit, his tail curling even more around Ochako, the electric dragon really having grown affectionate towards Ochako after the dragon rescue, her warm heart and kind, patient words bringing the stubborn dragon closer and closer to her until he was wrapped around her finger like a small puppy. Ochako smiled at her dragon before curling into his side even more with a sigh and closing her eyes.</p>
<p>    “Just gonna relax for a while…” Ochako mumbled.</p>
<p>    Izuku knew they would have to be home before dark but he let all of them sleep, his own eyes having to fight to keep from drooping closed now that the initial excitement of seeing their dragons again had faded off. Izuku busied himself with keeping watch over his friends. He knew there was no danger within the dragon sanctuary, but it gave him something to do and it calmed his heart to know they were safe. He knew he still had a long road ahead with Dakota, the pair only just starting to get the hang of flying together despite their successful attempt during the dragon trap rescue, but he couldn’t wait to trek that journey with her, their bond strengthening every day. Leaning back into Dakota’s warm side, Izuku gazed down at Ochako, watching as the brilliantly gold rays of the dying sunlight splayed out across her face and set her hair on fire, the chocolatey brown meshing with the gold into a fiery orange that was bursting with color and energy. He listened to her soft breathing and felt his heart start to beat erratically as his eyes roved over her plush lips, the flesh puckered slightly in her sleep. Finally tearing his gaze away from his sleeping friend, Izuku gazed out over the peaceful sanctuary. Jack had gone back inside the cottage but Sasori was attempting to get more fish from the large lake towards the middle of the sanctuary. He watched as the dragons fluttered their wings and nuzzled their eggs, their bodies relaxed and calm, finally free from the stresses of worrying about hunters and trappers. Dakota sighed and shifted behind him, making Izuku glance back at her. He made up his mind then, curled up within Dakota’s scales and surrounded by these wondrous creatures that no matter what happened, he was going to be here to protect them. To change the minds of the people around him and give these creatures the amazing life they deserved.</p>
<p>_____________________________</p>
<p>    “Anyone want to meet up for dinner after school today?” Kirishima asked the group sitting at his lunch table, his eyes bright and his fork waving in the air excitedly.</p>
<p>    “Sorry, we already have plans,” Izuku said, motioning towards Ochako and himself without really thinking.</p>
<p>    “Oooooh!!! Something special planned tonight Midoriya? You both have been pretty busy after school ever since the festival ended, anything we don’t know about that we should?” Kaminari asked from beside Kirishima, his eyebrows raising and his teasing smile widening as Izuku choked on his curry.</p>
<p>    “W-what!? N-no we just-” Izuku was scrambling for an explanation when Ochako piped up beside him, her composure a lot more solid despite her burning cheeks.</p>
<p>    “Deku has been helping me study for the upcoming final exams,” Ochako said. “I really struggle with logarithms and he is really good at them so we’ve been meeting for study sessions almost every day to help me prepare.”</p>
<p>    Kaminari stuck his tongue out at her in response. “You two are boring.”</p>
<p>    Izuku glanced at her gratefully when Kaminari dropped the subject and continued to shovel food in his mouth, trying to get the flames in his cheeks to die down.</p>
<p>    “Alright, I understand why you two can’t come, anyone else though?” Kirishima asked, glancing around the table. “Bakugo?”</p>
<p>    “Fuck off, Shitty Hair.”</p>
<p>    “Great! So, Bakugo is coming, who else?” Kirishima asked again, ignoring the glare Bakugo threw at him.</p>
<p>    “Jirou? Yaoyorozu? Kaminari? Ashido?”</p>
<p>    The students he called out to eventually agreed to come even if it took a little convincing, eventually forming a small dinner group for the evening.</p>
<p>    “Anyone else? Final call! How about you Iida? Wanna come?”</p>
<p>    Izuku and Ochako both discreetly glanced at their friend. They had found out shortly after the Sports Festival that his older brother, Ingenium had gotten attacked by the Hero Killer in Hosu. Both of them were trying to keep a close eye on their friend but Iida was making it hard for them, only responding to questions with curt, one word answers and mostly avoiding as much human contact as possible. It had taken Izuku and Ochako almost twenty minutes to convince him to eat lunch with them.</p>
<p>    “Iida?”</p>
<p>    Iida remained silent, his eyes glassy, his mind obviously preoccupied in his own world.</p>
<p>    “IIDA!”</p>
<p>    Iida finally snapped out of it, blinking rapidly and glancing over, he found everyone at the table to be staring at him.</p>
<p>    “Oh sorry, I was busy thinking, what did you guys want?” Iida asked in a tired, monotone voice that sounded so unlike him it made Izuku’s stomach clench.</p>
<p>    “It’s fine man, I was just wondering if you wanted to come eat out for dinner tonight with us, you know, get your mind off of things for a little while,” Kirishima said, his voice softening at the look and sound of their normally energetic class representative.</p>
<p>    “Oh, thanks Kirishima but I think I’ll pass on this one.”</p>
<p>    Izuku and Ochako looked at each other. They both wanted to breach the subject and desperately wanted to help their friend but they both felt helpless. They had spent endless hours talking it over while trying to study. They had even brought the issue to their dragons for advice but even that hadn’t cracked Iida’s hardened shell. After a few more minutes of staring off into space, Iida stood abruptly and left without a word, dumping his mostly full tray of food into the trash and heading off on his own, his shoulders slightly slumped and his back tensed like an iron rod.</p>
<p>    Izuku stood up to follow him but stopped when he felt Ochako lightly grip his wrist, her head shaking to tell him to give Iida some space. She knew it hurt Izuku to sit still, and she wanted to help him too, but with the way he was now, he just needed some space and time to get used to the new tragedy in his life. Izuku slowly sat back in his seat and hung out with his friends for the rest of the lunch period, but his mind was never far from the suffering of one of his closest friends.</p>
<p>____________________________</p>
<p>All throughout the day, Izuku had given Iida his space but never stopped trying to think of solutions. He was still mulling it over as he walked down the hall to his last class, his thumb pressed against his chin and his mouth moving as he mumbled a series of plans to himself.</p>
<p>“Something got you thinking, Midoriya m’boy?” The strong voice of All Might said suddenly from Izuku’s right. Izuku jumped a little in surprise and turned to see his idol and mentor standing in a small alcove of the hallway, his large muscled form covered by a snappy yellow suit that complimented his gold hair.</p>
<p>“Oh! Hello All Might! Sorry, I was just thinking, what can I do for you?” Izuku said, bowing quickly.</p>
<p>All Might waved off his bow and beckoned for Izuku to follow him, a small piece of paper clutched between his first two fingers on his left hand.</p>
<p>“Have you found where you want to intern, young Midoriya?” All Might asked.</p>
<p>“Oh, I have some ideas but as I didn’t get any offers, I’ve been trying to narrow them down based on different aspects such as where they are located and how well I could use my quirk and-”</p>
<p>All Might cut him off with a chuckle.</p>
<p>“No need to get into much detail, Midoriya, I was just asking because this morning you got an offer.”</p>
<p>“Really!?” Izuku asked incredulously, his eyes as wide as saucers as he looked up at his mentor.</p>
<p>“Yep,” All Might said, lifting the slip of paper and waving it in the air. “He’s an old friend of mine and he watched the festival. I told him about you and you captured his interest.”</p>
<p>Excitement flooded Izuku’s system but something about the way All Might said it made his eyes glance over at him in concern.</p>
<p>“But…?”</p>
<p>All Might sighed and pulled Izuku down a deserted hall, away from a group of oncoming students.</p>
<p>“There are two things about this man you should know if you decide to intern with him. One, he is terrifying.”</p>
<p>“Huh!?” Izuku gasped.</p>
<p>“Yeah,” All Might chuckled. “He will push you to the brink to make you the best of the best. Don’t let his age fool you, he is the toughest person I’ve ever met.”</p>
<p>“Okay, what’s the second thing I need to know?” Izuku asked.</p>
<p>All Might’s gaze darkened and Izuku felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up. He may look up to All Might but he had to admit, when his idol had that look on his face, it sent a cold shiver down his spine. All Might leaned forward then and placed his strong, large hands on Izuku’s shoulders, his eyes boring into Izuku’s frightened gaze.</p>
<p>“I respect and look up to my mentor but there was something he did many years ago that I still do not understand. We are on speaking terms but things are a little uneasy between us because of this incident that happened.” All Might said.</p>
<p>Izuku waited patiently as his mentor took a deep breath and steadied himself, almost as if he were about to tell Izuku about some horrible tragedy. He wanted to hear what All Might had to say but he was worried and scared. He was already worried about Iida, it might not be worth it to associate himself with this internship opportunity if it was going to be so stressful.</p>
<p>“Midoriya, my mentor… he… well he…” All Might gulped. “He bonded to a dragon.”</p>
<p>Izuku froze at All Might’s words, his eyes wide with shock but what All Might mistook as fear.</p>
<p>“I know, it’s terrifying and awful, to be forcibly connected with such a vicious, bloodthirsty beast. I tried for years to convince him to get rid of it, there are hospitals who perform bond-breaking operations, but he refused. He was corrupted by the beast, telling me that the dragon wouldn’t hurt anyone and that he loved it,” All Might’s nose scrunched up in disgust as he talked, the horror within Izuku growing by the second, but for reasons entirely different than what All Might thought.</p>
<p>“He still keeps the filthy creature with him, had a friend of his turn it into a cat as a disguise. There were several times where I considered turning him over to the authorities, getting him some help, but he seemed normal most of the time and I respected him too much to do that,” All Might sighed as he looked at Izuku’s horror-stricken face. “I promise, kid, I’m not telling you all of this to make you feel scared or dissuade you from taking this opportunity, but I felt you should know before you make your decision so that you know what you are comfortable with. I know you got attacked by a dragon earlier in the year, and I don’t want to force you to face anything you aren’t ready for yet.”</p>
<p>Izuku forced himself to stay calm, his fingers instinctively curling over his right palm behind his back to hide his bond mark. He swallowed thickly and smiled at All Might, telling himself over and over again that All Might had no idea, that Dakota and Legoshi were safe at the sanctuary and that he wasn’t going to be taken away. Bowing and slapping his arms to his sides, Izuku paid careful attention to keep his mark hidden, a newfound determination flowing through his limbs.</p>
<p>“Thank you All Might, sir! I greatly appreciate the information but I will go forward with this internship opportunity. If I can’t face my fear of dragons now, then I never will, and I may need that courage in the future, dragon attacks are a common thing people call heroes for and I want to be able to help everyone involved no matter what.”</p>
<p>Izuku stood up and held his left hand out, allowing All Might to gently place the paper in his palm. His mentor then did something he didn’t expect, he leaned down and gave Izuku a hug, his strong arms encasing him warmly.</p>
<p>“You’re a good kid, young Midoriya, and you will make an amazing hero. I have no doubt you will make me proud.”</p>
<p>Izuku beamed at the praise but his stomach still churned at All Might’s words, his mind conjuring up images of All Might staring at him in shock and utter disappointment, a gun or a sword held to Dakota’s head as she struggled and roared in pain.</p>
<p>“Thank you, sir.”</p>
<p>All Might eventually released Izuku and moved past the boy, rolling his shoulders and standing up straight, preparing to show his face to the high-achieving staff and students of U.A. once more.</p>
<p>“Wait! All Might,” Izuku said just before his idol could walk out into the bustling hallway. “What kind of dragon is it?”</p>
<p>All Might glanced back at him.</p>
<p>“You know dragon types?”</p>
<p>Izuku forced himself to keep from flinching at All Might’s questioning tone.</p>
<p>“Yeah, after I was attacked, I was curious. I was obsessed with finding out what type of dragon attacked me and why it let me live. I studied a bunch of dragon books so I could be better prepared in the future and force myself to work through my new reality of having to deal with this initially crippling fear.”</p>
<p>All Might turned around to face the boy, and Izuku was shocked to see a small tear slip from All Might’s eye.</p>
<p>“I understand, Midoriya. His dragon is a Deadly Nadder. Do whatever you need to do to prepare for your eventual confrontation with the beast. Luckily, with my mentor, you won’t be attacked, but as you know, dragons are evil, vile, nasty creatures, and they are as smart as a whip. Never turn your back on it.”</p>
<p>With that, All Might fell into step with a few oncoming teachers, greeting them warmly as if he had not just rocked Izuku’s world. Izuku fought to control his breathing. He wasn’t worried about the dragon at all, he actually tended to like Deadly Nadders thanks to their playful personalities and gentle mannerisms. He was worried about All Might and his mindset about dragons, thoughts about All Might’s words on the bond-breaking operations making Izuku’s blood run cold. Clenching his fists, he looked down at the card he held in his hand.</p>
<p>“Gran Torino…” Izuku muttered to himself as he read the paper with his address and phone number.</p>
<p>Resituating his face into a neutral expression, Izuku flowed into the crowd just like All Might did, making a mental note to tell Dakota and Ochako about this new development as soon as he could.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Walking on Eggshells & Dragon Scales</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Hello everyone! I hope all of you guys are staying safe! Sorry, I know it been FOREVER since I last posted but my phone was having some issues so I couldn’t post for a while. Now that we’re good to go again, I came right back on to post! I’ve been trying to write more since we are stuck at home so sorry if this chapter is a little long. I’m also sorry that’s it’s kind of exposition heavy, the next chapter will be much more action-packed! Thank you for all of you, I hope y’all enjoy this new chapter! I’ll also be posting the last chapter of “Since When do Heroes Have Paws?” sometime very soon so keep an eye out for that if your interested. Alright, without further ado, here is the next chapter!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Izuku stood on the front porch, his eyes trained on the large wooden doors directly in front of his face. It didn’t seem like much other than the fact that the house was rather large compared to the surrounding buildings but Izuku knew that behind this door was his new mentor, waiting to give him advice and make the most of his erratic quirk. Izuku gulped, sweat sliding down the back of his neck. He wasn’t even nervous because of the dragon, he was nervous just at the idea of meeting his new mentor, desperately wanting to live up to All Might’s expectations. Izuku jumped slightly at the feeling of something cool and damp touching his right palm, his bond mark tingling slightly at the sensation. Looking down, Izuku managed to force a smile to his face at the sight of Dakota, Emiko having turned her into a dog before they left that morning, her wet nose pressed into his hand, comforting him.</p><p>“It’ll be alright, Deku,” Dakota said down the bond, reverting to his nickname. “I’ll be here with you every step of the way, and you will do great! This is an internship, not a job application.”</p><p>“I know,” Izuku said, also using the bond to keep their conversation private from prying eyes. “I’m just nervous. I bet it will be fine.”</p><p>Izuku flexed his right hand to run his fingers through the fur on her head while lifting his left hand to knock on the large wooden doors. He held his breath but when silence answered his knock, he tried again, harder this time. The door creaked a little as the pressure from his hand accidentally pushed the door open just a crack.</p><p>“Hello? Gran Torino, sir?” Izuku pushed the door open slightly and let out a shocked yell as the sight of an old man’s body laying on the floor with red liquid surrounding him came into view.</p><p>“Oh my god he’s dead!!!” Izuku cried out.</p><p>“I’m alright, just fell over,” the old man said, suddenly raising his head off the floor and smiling at Izuku.</p><p>Izuku cried out again in surprise as the old man stood up slowly.</p><p>“AH! He’s alive!!”</p><p>The old man reached over with a gloved hand and grasped a walking stick that was laying on the floor a little bit away from him, using it to push himself into a standing position. Izuku noticed that he was wearing a hero costume, a yellow and white one with large boots, yellow gloves, and a black mask but other than that, the man seemed like the farthest thing from a capable hero. His whole body was trembling as he leaned against his walking stick for support and his free hand brushed bits of sausage from his shirt.</p><p>“Sorry about that, I was carrying a bunch of these sausages covered in ketchup and fell over! I’ll clean it up later though, for now, I want to know who you are and what you are doing here,” the man said, giving Izuku a dopey smile. Izuku glanced at Dakota at the man’s words.</p><p>“Was he not told that I was coming?” He asked Dakota down the bond.</p><p>“He should’ve been. Didn’t All Might tell you he let him know?”</p><p>“Yeah he did but maybe he forgot or something?”</p><p>Izuku cleared his throat and spoke aloud this time.</p><p>“My name is Midoriya Izuku, and I am here to take your offer to host me as your intern for hero training. Are you Gran Torino?”</p><p>“Who are you?” the man asked, tilting his head and narrowing his eyes.</p><p>Shit… Izuku didn’t know what to say or do. When was the last time All Might had talked to this guy? This guy was just a senile old man! He knew All Might and Gran Torino had a stressful relationship due to the information All Might had told him in the hallway but had it really been so long that Gran Torino had lost his mind a little?</p><p>Izuku set down the case he was carrying, which held his costume and support items on the floor by his feet, and bowed to the old man. Dakota sat between Izuku and the old man but did not speak.</p><p>“Sorry sir for barging in on you, I’m just going to make a quick phone call if you’ll excuse me for a moment.”</p><p>Izuku turned away and pulled his phone out of his pocket, dialing All Might’s number. The phone only rang twice before Dakota let out a low growl, just low enough for Izuku to hear, making the boy turn around. His jaw dropped as he saw the man kneeling down on the floor, his hands rummaging through Izuku’s case and pulling random things out of it.</p><p>“Hey!” Izuku said, clicking off his phone and shoving it back into his pocket. “That’s my stuff!”</p><p>“Why don’t you go ahead and stop me with a One for All powered punch then,” the man said, his voice much deeper and less dopey than before, his eyes sharp and his mouth set into a firm line.</p><p>Izuku was flustered and confused. One moment he had been a trembling, crazy old man and the next he had sharply cut Izuku with his tongue, casually demanding respect and radiating an aura of high intelligence and hidden strength.</p><p>“What?”</p><p>“You heard me, hit me with it.”</p><p>“I can’t do that!”</p><p>“Why not?”</p><p>“Because…” Izuku didn’t know how to answer. He was a little embarrassed at his inability to control his own quirk and he didn’t know how much Gran Torino knew about his situation with All Might.</p><p>“Because you can’t control it, right?” Gran Torino turned to him as he grabbed the costume inside Izuku’s case, throwing it at the boy. “Go, put this on and then come back here as soon as possible.”</p><p>Izuku shoved down his confusion and nodded with a determined look on his face, turning to redress. Dakota moved to follow him but stopped when a sleek ginger tabby cat strutted in front of her, its long tail curled above its back and its head held high. Dakota paused but motioned for Izuku to continue without her, her eyes trained on the cat’s piercing yellow gaze.</p><p>Izuku came back a moment later, his improved costume sitting nicely on his frame, his eyes scanning the room to find Gran Torino standing in the center of the room, the furniture pushed back a little. The orange tabby stood on his shoulder and Dakota sat directly in front of him, unwavering under Gran Torino’s critical gaze. Looking up, Gran Torino gave that innocent, dopey smile once more.</p><p>“Your dog is very pretty,” He said with a slight croak, the change in his facial expression and voice making him seem like an almost entirely different person. “What’s her name?”</p><p>Izuku wasn’t going to fall for this charade again. Setting his jaw, Izuku walked up to stand beside Dakota, his right hand reaching out to scratch behind her ears. She leaned into him appreciatively but didn’t close her eyes like she normally did when he scratched her sweet spot, her eyes trained fiercely on Gran Torino and the cat on his shoulder.</p><p>“Her name is Dakota, what’s your Deadly Nadder’s name?”</p><p>“His name is-” Gran Torino paused, his brain tripping over the words ‘Deadly Nadder’. A wicked smile graced his features then, making him look smug. “So All Might told you then? What do you think?”</p><p>Izuku didn’t know how to answer him. He knew that Gran Torino had been prying earlier when he had asked for Dakota’s name but now that he had confronted him about it, he realized he had no idea how much Gran Torino knew about him. All Might didn’t know anything about Dakota so it was obvious he hadn’t learned anything from his old apprentice, but Izuku knew not to underestimate the old man, his senile appearance hiding his true intelligent nature. Izuku glanced down at his shoes, digging the toes into the carpet. He felt Dakota’s comforting nose press into his hand again and he was grateful, but he still had no idea how to respond.</p><p>“Let me ask it this way, do you hate dragons like the rest of the people in this city? This country? This world? Or are you like me, someone who finds them endearing and kind, interesting and intelligent?” Gran Torino asked, crossing his arms as he waited.</p><p>“I don’t hate them,” Izuku said, trying desperately to choose his words carefully.</p><p>“Why not?”</p><p>“Why do you want to know?”</p><p>“Damn it boy! Have some respect for your elders and superiors!”</p><p>Izuku flinched and mumbled his apology, his hand flying to scratch Dakota’s head, her presence comforting his confused mind.</p><p>“You seem to have a strong connection with that dog,” Gran Torino said, leaning back and scratching his beard, his eyes narrowed slightly.</p><p>“She’s my best friend,” Izuku replied, forcing himself to remain calm. He hated being under this spotlight but he knew Gran Torino could help. He was mostly worried about Dakota, and how he would react to the type of dragon she was, given her rarity and worth. Suddenly, Gran Torino’s shoulders slumped slightly and he let out a tired sigh.</p><p>“Hey kid, I think it’s pretty obvious you aren’t going to try to turn me in for having a dragon with me. You’re smart and you seem good natured, so let’s just break this ice and move on? We have to start training anyway and we won’t get anywhere if we are so wary of one another.”</p><p>Izuku breathed a sigh of relief and relaxed a little. Dakota relaxed too, her muscles loosening from their tensed position and her ears lowering so they were lopsided and less strained. She closed her eyes as her rider relaxed, allowing herself to feed off of his calm demeanor.</p><p>“So, as you know, I have a Deadly Nadder, his name is Rexy,” Gran Torino said, reaching up to stroke his cat’s soft head. “What kind of dragon do you have?”</p><p>Izuku struggled to keep the surprise from his face. He knew the man was smart but he hadn’t expected him to figure out Dakota was a dragon so quickly.</p><p>“Ah don’t look so surprised. I only knew because I have a dragon myself. That dog is way too intelligent and responsive to emotions to be a normal pup.”</p><p>Dakota tilted her head slightly, impressed with his observation.</p><p>“It’s alright, Izuku,” Dakota shot down the bond. “You can tell him, he can help us. Not only to grow as a bonded pair, but to also help us work together as a team. I want to be a hero almost as much as you do.”</p><p>Izuku glanced down and smiled at her. He knew she wanted to help others, she had always been that caring, gentle type despite her terrifying demeanor, but hearing her say she wanted to work with him, even if it meant saving and helping the very people who disgraced her entire species made his heart glow with pride and warmth.</p><p>“She is a Night Fury,” Izuku said, ignoring the jolt of fear that ran up his spine at Gran Torino’s shocked expression, his eyebrows disappearing into his light gray hair.</p><p>“R-Really?” Gran Torino asked in a hushed voice, his whisper filled with awe.</p><p>“Yeah, she saved my life.”</p><p>“Only after you saved mine,” Dakota shot back down the bond with a slight growl.</p><p>Gran Torino narrowed his eyes at her.</p><p>“Is she angry about something?”</p><p>“No, she just wanted me to take credit for saving her life too. That’s how we met. She was all tied up in a forest, blood seeping from numerous wounds. She was half dead when I found her.”</p><p>“Why did you save her?” Gran Torino asked, moving towards Dakota slowly, his palm held out for her to sniff appreciatively.</p><p>“Because she was helpless,” Izuku said. “When I found her, I almost killed her myself, I had the dagger out and everything, terrified that it was all just some scheme for her to sink her teeth into me. But she could barely move and when I raised my weapon to strike, I remembered what it was like to be bullied and pummeled to the ground before I got my quirk. I saw so much of myself in her that I just couldn't. A bunch of hunters showed up later and she saved my life in return, although I don’t remember how that happened exactly, I was unconscious after I bonded to her.”</p><p>“So you are bonded to her then?” Gran Torino asked.</p><p>“Yeah… why wouldn’t I be?” Izuku asked.</p><p>“Well because bonding is quite a rare thing, I’m sure you’ve been told that. And, contrary to common belief, you do not have to bond to a dragon to become close to one. I have a few friends who have made connections with dragons that weren’t full bonds.”</p><p>Izuku thought back to Ochako and Legoshi and realized that it did make sense, it just hadn’t crossed his mind.</p><p>“Are you bonded to yours?” Izuku asked, eyeing the orange tabby.</p><p>“Yes,” Gran Torino said, pulling his hand away from Dakota to give his own dragon attention, the small cat rubbing his face against Gran Torino’s beard.</p><p>“Toshinori gave you his quirk,” Gran Torino said suddenly.</p><p>The rapid change in topic rattled Izuku slightly but he nodded.</p><p>“Was that before or after the bonding happened between you and your dragon?”</p><p>“Before.”</p><p>“I’m assuming he doesn’t know then?”</p><p>Izuku nodded his head sadly.</p><p>“I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to tell him. He had so much hatred in his voice when he was talking about your dragon,” Izuku said. “Why does he hate them so much? Did he have a bad experience with them when he was younger or something?”</p><p>“Nah kid, Toshinori has just been exposed to the same massive amounts of negative propaganda towards them that we all have. He sees the reports of the attacks and visits hospitals where people are wheeled in with missing limbs and horribly mutilated bodies, all because of dragons. He doesn’t see it as the people disturbing the dragons and having that lead to a natural, albeit dangerous reaction. He sees it as the equivalent of a villain killing and torturing people. He sees them as evil, villainous creatures rather than just animals following their instincts and protecting themselves. Unfortunately, that is how the dragon trapping and trading industry has grown and learned to function, by spreading these nasty lies and encouraging the government to allow these horrible mass hunting sprees. I mean, even you said you were willing to kill your dragon because at the time you thought she was going to rip you to shreds. I felt the same way at one point in my life. It only changes if you are willing to see past the tough scales, sharp claws, and killer teeth.”</p><p>Izuku fell silent, his heart heavy. He remembered believing the newscasts about dragons being heartless monsters, leeches that weaseled into their cities and killed for the fun of it.</p><p>“But hopefully,” Gran Torino said, bringing Izuku’s attention back on him. “With more and more of your young generation questioning the status quo and learning more about the world we live in, we can significantly lower or even eradicate the number of trappings and killings. That is why we have to work hard and prove ourselves ten times more than the average hero, to show how much more enhanced we are with these glorious creatures at our sides rather than at the end of our blades.”</p><p>Izuku felt a jolt of determination run up his spine and realized that it wasn’t entirely from himself. Looking beside him he saw Daokta’s perked ears and shining eyes, her tail wagging slowly back and forth behind her, her passion so strong Izuku could feel it in his own body through the bond. Izuku smiled and felt his own sense of determination and drive flow through him. He knew Dakota felt it too when she nuzzled his palm appreciatively, his bond mark tingling with even more strength than before.</p><p>“Yeah!” Izuku cried, pumping one fist into the air. “I’ll do anything to show the world that dragons deserve to be treated with respect and kindness.”</p><p>Gran Torino smiled with pride and stood up tall.</p><p>“Good,” he said, his gruff voice resounding throughout the living room. “Now that we’ve gotten all of that out of the way, we might as well get started on that dream of yours. Get into a fighting stance, let’s see how much power is behind your punch.”</p><p>Izuku moved into his best fighting stance, forcing himself to hold that position even when Gran Torino suddenly shot into the air with a blast of air from the bottom of his boots, coming to rest up on the wall, the fingers of his tough gloves allowing him to grip the wall like a spider. A wicked smile came to his face as he prepared to fire away from the wall, ready to show the boy exactly how much speed he had packed away in the balls of his feet, even as an old man.</p><p>“Give it all you got,” Gran Torino said, flying at the boy, their training beginning with the bang of his quirk blasting against the wall.</p><p>______________________</p><p>Their internships were only supposed to last a week but Izuku already felt as if two months had passed. It was day three of his training with Gran Torino and the man hadn’t given him a single break. After their discussion about dragons on the first day of Izuku’s internship, Gran Torino had proceeded to beat him senseless, bouncing off the walls at a speed barely perceptible with the naked eye, and instructing Izuku to hit him. Izuku had been pinned to the floor and kicked in the back several times, none of his moves or punches making any hits. After pinning the boy to the ground for what seemed like the twentieth time, he had explained that All Might was a terrible teacher and was failing to teach him the responsible, necessary way to control his quirk and manage the insane power.</p><p>It was now the third day and Izuku was getting sore and frustrated. Not so much with his bizarre mentor as with himself. He was tired of being kicked to the floor, but more upset at his inability to strike back. Today had been no different, his mentor using the walls and doors of his house as his own personal trampolines, ramming into Izuku’s body with what felt like the force of a car. They had decided to take a break after Izuku had been knocked to the floor yet again, Dakota pacing nervously around the couch as she watched. Gran Torino had allowed her to come into his home everyday just with the promise that she didn’t interfere yet. Gran Torino knew it was hard for her, her ears constantly spinning to flatten against her head and her fur rising on the back of her neck with every thump and groan from Izuku. But she had kept her promise, staying out of the action and merely watching. Gran Torino needed to teach Izuku how to use his quirk before he could incorporate Dakota into his training schedule.</p><p>“Damn it,” Izuku mumbled after they had made their way out of the bakery Gran Torino had sent them too, claiming he wanted something sweet to eat during their break. “I just wish I knew what was wrong. I know Gran Torino is trying to tell me what it is in the way he fights but I just can’t figure it out! I know the basics of making my quirk work and even my fighting style at its base works well with the power behind One for All but I just can’t get it to act the way I want it to without destroying my body.”</p><p>“Yeah I understand that,” Dakota rumbled down the bond. Izuku glanced at her, something about the way she said it sounded strange to him.</p><p>“Do you mean in a logical sense or from personal experience?” Izuku asked back down the bond.</p><p>Dakota froze and her eyes shot to his. She had not expected him to catch onto her tone like that, hadn’t even really realized she had a tone until he said something.</p><p>“J-Just in a logical sense,” Dakota said. Izuku wanted to question the stutter in her words and her sudden nervousness but decided to leave it be. She would tell him when she wanted to tell him, if there was anything for her to tell him at all. He could’ve just been imagining things.</p><p>The pair walked the rest of the way to Gran Torino’s place in a comfortable silence. Dakota still seemed a bit tense but since Izuku had already decided to give her space on the issue, he didn’t mention it. He merely reached down and scratched her ear, trying to soothe her. She did eventually relax as he pushed open the door and passed the bags of pastries over to his mentor, a small smile gracing his features when the old man brightened up at the sight of the parcel.</p><p>“Well done young Midoriya,” Gran Torino said, making his way into the kitchen where his brand new microwave sat on the counter, the old one having been broken by Gran Torino landing on it during one of their training sessions. Izuku snorted at the man’s words, finding it annoying and humorous that the only praise he managed to snag from the old man was in getting him food. Unwrapping the package, Gran Torino placed the treats on a plate and shoved it into Izuku’s hands.</p><p>“Here, you heat them, I’m gonna go to the bathroom.”</p><p>Izuku watched as the man waddled out of the room with a quizzical expression but placed the plate of treats into the microwave anyway, his mind trailing back to thoughts about how he could improve his technique. He was so lost in thought that he jumped when the timer went off, his hands fumbling to open the door and pull out the pastries. Almost as if the sound of the microwave had summoned him, Gran Torino sped into the kitchen, grabbing the plate from Izuku before the boy could even really think.</p><p>“I just love these delectable treats,” Gran Torino hummed as he grasped one. “I have them all the time when I’m trying to think. They help me clear my head.”</p><p>Gran Torino bit down enthusiastically only to pause halfway through his bite, his face turning into grimace. He yanked the treat away from his face and looked at Izuku in frustrated annoyance.</p><p>“Oi! Why didn’t you cook this all the way! It’s all warm and soft on the outside but the inside is a block of ice! Didn’t anyone teach you how to use a simple microwave? You need to spread the heat evenly throughout the entire treat so that everything is warm without being too cold or too hot.”</p><p>“S-Sorry, I don’t have that kind of-” Izuku stopped mid-sentence, his eyes wide. Dakota raised her head from where she had rested it on her paws, her eyes gleaming. He had finally figured it out.</p><p>“THIS PASTRY IS ME!” Izuku yelled suddenly, holding the biscuit up to the light excitedly.</p><p>“Now you’re starting to scare me, kid, last time I checked, you were not an edible dessert,” Gran Torino teased, his voice changing into that croaky old man voice again.</p><p>“Oh, yeah, sorry! I just meant that I keep using my quirk for large, powerful, one note critical hits. That is what’s making me so slow and rusty! And that is why my body keeps breaking! I’m putting too much pressure on certain parts of my body rather than conditioning the whole thing!” The kitchen suddenly lit up as pink jolts of power suddenly crept up Izuku’s legs, past his torso, over his arms and finally crossing in the center of his face until the pink streaks of light disappeared completely, leaving instead flashes of green lightning that skittered over his skin and illuminated the room in a greenish glow. Gran Torino smirked smugly as he watched the cogs in Izuku’s head turn, finally understanding the key to mastering his quirk.</p><p>“Very good,” Gran Torino said. “Do you think you can maintain this?”</p><p>Izuku hesitated but then nodded.</p><p>“Good, you have three minutes, hit me.”</p><p>______________________________</p><p>Izuku watched as the buildings flew by, his cheek resting on the knuckles of his fist, his elbow propped up on the window sill. Gran Torino was sitting across from him, Rexy curled up on his lap and Emiko was sitting beside the old man, humming a merry tune as they moved.</p><p>The group was on a train headed to Tokyo, Gran Torino dragging them along with him after his earlier training session with Izuku. It hadn’t gone quite as well as Izuku had hoped but he was proud of the progress he had made, his new maneuverability finally giving him something to work with. Gran Torino had told him that they were going to Tokyo to give Izuku some real experience with some genuine villains. Nothing more than low-level thugs, but villains nonetheless to give Izuku the chance to use his quirk against different quirks in different settings.</p><p>Izuku realized they were heading close to Hosu and sent Iida a text saying they should try and meet. He didn’t really expect his friend to respond, Iida still fumbling around in the dark pit of grief even when they parted for their internships, but he thought it was worth giving it a try. Dakota rested her head on his knee, her body situated in the space in between the four seats. Izuku had offered her the empty seat since there were only three of them but Dakota had opted to sit on the floor where it was more stable for her.</p><p>“Oooh, I’m so excited!” Emiko squealed excitedly, clasping her hands together and following Izuku’s line of sight out the window. “You’ve come so far along, it’ll be so fun to see what you’ve learned so far!”</p><p>Izuku was excited too but he was a little nervous. He was determined to make a good impression and use his quirk to the fullest.</p><p>“Thank you for coming along, Emiko. I wanted to have you around so that if things do go south and we really need our back-up special forces, then we can have them,” Gran Torino said, gesturing to Dakota and Rexy as he spoke. Emiko’s Hobblegrunt dragon, Kame, had opted to stay back with Haruka and Cassian, not too keen on being in the center of conflict.</p><p>“It was no problem, Gran Torino,” she said brightly. “I wasn’t doing anything important anyway.”</p><p>Their conversation lapsed as they neared Hosu, all of them silently preparing for the small fights they were about to participate in. Izuku was a little nervous but he was able to keep his body relaxed, taking comfort in tangling his fingers in Dakota’s long black fur. Dakota was relaxed as well, her tail lightly tapping the floor of the train as Izuku’s fingers massaged her shoulder and neck. Rexy was curled up on Gran Torino’s lap half asleep and purring. It was a comfortable silence despite the idea of fighting villains looming over their heads. It was because of this quiet calm that Izuku did not expect the sudden bolt of fear to race up his spine. His eyes, which had been drifting softly closed, now shot open and darted to look at his dragon, who now sat up, alert. Her ears were swiveling constantly and her nose was twitching as she smelled the air within the train. Glancing over, he noticed Rexy doing the same thing, a small frown plastered on the cat’s face.</p><p>“Dakota, what’s wro-”</p><p>A loud scream and the sound of screeching metal cut him off, the train swiveling slightly on the tracks as a huge weight slammed into the side. Izuku whipped around and stood with Gran Torino and Emiko to see a ghoulishly white hand with long fingers and wicked claws pry its way through the metallic side of the train. People stood and scrambled from the spot, screaming. Izuku felt his blood run cold as the creature forced more of its body into the train. The short-circuiting lights made it difficult to see but the creature's form was undeniable to Izuku.</p><p>It was a Nomu.</p><p>“STAY BACK!” Gran Torino yelled at Izuku and launched forward, his fists connecting with the creature and sending both it and him flying out of the train. Emiko reached down instantly and pressed her palm to the tabby cat’s side, allowing her power to flow through her fingertips. The cat jumped to follow his rider as soon as he was released, his full dragon form coming back just as he reached the hole in the train wall, his orange and blue wings spreading to propel himself desperately into the air.</p><p>The train came to a screeching halt in the center of Hosu and people flooded the doors in an attempt to get out. Instead of running for the packed doors, Dakota and Izuku ran for the giant hole the Nomu had carved. Emiko followed behind them.</p><p>“Wait! Gran Torino said to wait here!” She cried out.</p><p>“Here is too dangerous,” Izuku called back. “And he might need help! That was a Nomu, they are extremely deadly!”</p><p>Emiko wanted to argue further but instead swallowed her words and followed behind the Izuku, who had already turned around and made a mad dash through the hole and out onto the city street, Dakota right at his heels. All three of them skidded to a halt and gaped at the destruction around them. It was almost as if the whole area was on fire, not one but THREE Nomus running around, one of which had wings that it used to carry things and people high into the air before dropping them.</p><p>“Holy shit…” Emiko breathed. Quickly snapping out of her haze, she grabbed Izuku’s wrist and started to run towards a set of alleyways further downtown. “Come on!” She called out, finally releasing his wrist so he could follow her on his own.</p><p>“Where are we going?” He yelled in response, his feet pounding on the pavement.</p><p>“To find Gran Torino!”</p><p>The pair navigated the city streets, Dakota keeping pace with them as if she did this everyday. Her ears were perked up but her teeth were bared in a silent snarl, daring any of the Nomus to come close. Finally, they reached the spot where the fights must’ve started, a massive fire raging in the center with several pro-heros at the scene in an attempt to stifle the chaos. Emiko leaped forward to help and Izuku moved to follow her when a voice caught his attention.</p><p>“Has anyone seen the hero in training, Ingenium!? Anyone at all!?”</p><p>Izuku froze and turned to see a hero scanning the area with fear and concern filling his gaze. That was when everything clicked. Hosu. The Hero Killer. The Nomus. Turning on his heel, Izuku ran in the opposite direction of Emiko and sprinted towards the set of alleyways that lined the central square, his feet pounding on the pavement hard enough to make his teeth rattle. He had to find Iida, now.</p><p>Dakota moved beside him without hesitation, her sharp eyes scanning every corner and space for any sign of Iida. Worry and fear gnawed at the both of them, the possibility of their grief-stricken friend getting caught in the crossfire of this all too high. Izuku darted through the dark alleys, his quirk lighting up the space with an eerie green glow. Leaping around another corner, Izuku glanced down the cramped street and immediately felt his entire body tense. Shifting his weight so that he could fire off from the wall with the balls of his feet like Gran Torino often did, Izuku drew his fist back and struck the face of the hero killer with all of his might, knocking him away from where he had been standing over his friend’s crumpled body, his katana raised to strike. The Hero Killer grunted at the impact and flew backwards, his body skidding down the street for a little while before he was able to stop himself and sit up.</p><p>“Tch, another brat to get in my way…” Stain grumbled as he took in the sight of Izuku standing protectively in front of Iida with his hands raised and his feet parted in a sturdy fighting stance. Standing beside Izuku, Dakota had all four paws spread apart so that she could keep her chest low to the ground, a snarl coming from deep within her chest and bubbling past her bared teeth, her ears pinned and her eyes flashing.</p><p>“M-Midoriya…?”</p><p>Izuku turns to find Iida looking at him with a slightly dazed, confused look, pain etching his features.</p><p>“Don’t worry, Iida, I’ll save you! Come on, we need to get to open ground so the pro heros can support us!’</p><p>“I can’t move,” Iida groans in response. “G-Go, go without me. This has nothing to do with you!”</p><p>“The essence of being a hero is meddling where they don’t have to,” Izuku says confidently. “I’m not going anywhere.”</p><p>Dakota growled in agreement just as Izuku reached subtly for his phone behind his back and sent his location out with the press of a button. Hoping to whatever gods were out there that someone, anyone would be near enough to be in the position to help him. He could tell just by the way the Hero Killer was acting that this was a different kind of villain than those he fought at the USJ. This villain had a clear goal in mind, he didn’t just wipe out people he didn’t like, he had a purpose and he was willing to see the purpose through to the end.</p><p>Tensing his muscles, Izuku prepared himself to make the first move, his quirk crackling with barely suppressed energy as he activated it throughout his entire body.</p><p>“It’s going to be alright, Iida,” Izuku said and leaped forward, Dakota right by his side</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>By the way, just as a fun fact, Rexy, Gran Torino’s Deadly Nadder, is actually named after my mom’s horse! We have two horses bc we jump competitively with them. Her horse is a Rhineland Warmblood named Rexy and mine is an off the track Thoroughbred (aka an OTTB) named Moose! I just thought it’d be fun to incorporate Rexy’s name into the story, so if any of you care to know where I got his name, it’s bc he’s a part of my family!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Blood Stained</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Hey everyone! I hope all of you are staying safe during quarantine! I’m back with another chapter for this story and boy was it a long one. Thanks for all of your amazing comments and kudos, everything you guys write pushes me forward and I’m really glad you guys enjoy my work. Even if you don’t leave comments or kudos, thanks for reading! Also, now that my dog MHA fic is done, I’m going to be adding more shorter works for you guys to enjoy while I continue to work on this. Thanks again for reading, and I hope you enjoy! Until next time! ❤️</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Gran Torino panted lightly, his hands on his knees as he tried to hide the fact that he was fighting for breath. He had just defeated one of the Nomu creatures, the monster attempting to attack him with a tongue quirk only to have the tongue blasted to pieces by Gran Torino’s jets before it was mercilessly smashed into the ground by the older pro-hero.</p>
<p>“Your age starting to get to you, old-timer?” A voice said, making Gran Torino narrow his eyes at the figure behind him.</p>
<p>“Never,” Gran Torino answered, standing up slowly and making his way over to Endeavor, the Number 2 hero. “Know anything about what happened here, Todoroki?”</p>
<p>Endeavor glared down at Gran Torino. He knew better than to reply with a snarky comment despite the fact that he was broiling with hate for the old man. He didn’t necessarily have a reason to hate him, other than the fact that this one of the few heroes who actively used dragons in his hero work, standing up as a representative of the seemingly disgusting beasts. Endeavor sneered at him but reined in his tongue, refusing to give the old man the satisfaction of seeing him unnerved by the presence of an overgrown lizard.</p>
<p>“I don’t know much. I was here to guide my son, Shouto through his internship to become the next number 1 hero. We were heading inward to find some villains for him to fight when the center of the city was thrown headfirst into hell. He ran off to find something but I decided to come over here and see what the hell was happening. I’m assuming since you asked that you don’t know anything about this either?”</p>
<p>“No,” Gran Torino said, turning to face Rexy, his bright orange Deadly Nadder. “But I bet we can find out.”</p>
<p>Reaching up to pat the dragon’s nose, Gran Torino closed his eyes and used his left hand to touch his dragon’s bond mark, his fingers closing over the symbol on his dragon’s neck right below the frills that lined his head. He sat in that position until the mark began to glow brightly, removing his hand and backing away from his partner with a gentle nod. Rexy let out a curt roar and shot into the air.</p>
<p>“What the fuck was that all about?” Endeavor asked.</p>
<p>Gran Torino forced himself not to smile at the slight touch of panic in Endeavor’s tone.</p>
<p>“I just sent him up to go fetch us some answers, see what kind of villains we’re dealing with here. I made our bonding mark glow so that other heroes wouldn’t shoot him down.”</p>
<p>Gran Torino knew it was risky sending his dragon up without him, even with the glowing mark as some heroes were still stupid enough to try to shoot down dragons that were bonded to heroes out of the fear that the dragons would swoop in for the kill but they needed to figure out the situation and right now, Gran Torino was needed elsewhere.</p>
<p>“Stay safe my friend,” Gran Torino whispered while looking up at the sky where Rexy had already disappeared before turning to face the burly fire hero beside him.</p>
<p>“What’s your plan of action?” Gran Torino asked.</p>
<p>“MY plan is to find and kill the rest of those weird bird monster things,” Endeavor said, the flames on his face flaring up slightly. “YOUR plan is to go back to wherever the hell you came from. I’ve got this covered, you’ve done your part, old man.”</p>
<p>Gran Torino grunted in annoyance but managed to keep from rolling his eyes.</p>
<p>“I’ll leave you to this but I’m not leaving this crime scene. As much as you disagree with my methods and think I’m too old to handle the situation, I am still a certified hero who has never lost that license for good reason. Good luck to you, if you find it to be of convenience, please keep me updated on what you find.”</p>
<p>Endeavor growled lowly, wanting nothing more than to turn in this lunatic and be done with it. But he knew that what the old man said was true. Gran Torino was a deserving hero with a solid record and a high ranking. Endeavor hated it but knew he would never win in a battle of legal proceedings against the man no matter how senile Endeavor believed him to be.</p>
<p>“Fine, but leave the bird things to me,” Endeavor said, refusing to be outshone simply because the old man had a dragon with him.</p>
<p>“Done,” Gran Torino said. The jet hero was just about to take off when a voice hollering his name caused him to pause and turn. Endeavor even looked over, feigning disinterest as a small woman with dark skin and braided black hair ran up to them, her green eyes glittering with worry and determination.</p>
<p>“Emiko, where did you come from?” Gran Torino asked, turning to face his friend. Emiko slowed her running and stopped in front of the two heroes, her eyes wide.</p>
<p>“Oh thank the gods I found you! Everything has gone to shit, the whole main square is on fire and both of those creature things are ripping everything up! We’ve managed to keep casualties to a minimum but the number of injuries is increasing by the minute. I came to find you once the train crashed, we can’t afford being separated for too long.”</p>
<p>Gran Torino nodded at her and went to move when he realized something.</p>
<p>“Emiko?”</p>
<p>“Hm?”</p>
<p>“Did you leave Midoriya on the train?”</p>
<p>“What?” Emiko asked, her brow furrowing. “Of course not, he’s right here! He and Dakota followed me all the way-”</p>
<p>Emiko paled slightly when she turned around to see the empty street behind her rather than the boy and his dog as she had expected.</p>
<p>“SHIT!” Gran Torino said. “Do you have any idea where he may have snuck off to?”</p>
<p>“No!” Emiko said, her voice raising an octave as she began to panic a little. “If I had Kame with me I’d be able to search for them but I didn’t bring her this time because she’s not a huge fan of conflict. Where’s Rexy? We can send him to go find them.”</p>
<p>“I just sent him on a recon mission. I could call him back but he still won’t be back for a while, not with all of this smoke and chaos.”</p>
<p>“Damn it!” Emiko cried out angrily. “He could get himself killed out here! Even with Dakota at his side! And I have no idea how she’s going to react, this is the first time she’s been in a fight since the USJ, and she wasn’t even a part of that fight! The last aggressive interaction she’s ever had with humans where she was an active participant in the attack was when she and Midoriya met. We have no indication of how she’ll act when faced with something like this!”</p>
<p>“What the hell are you two going on about?” Endeavor snarled at them, annoyed at their vague bickering.</p>
<p>“My intern,” Gran Torino grumbled. “He was here with us on the train when one of those creatures showed up and destroyed the train. He was with my friend, Emiko here, but now we have no idea where he’s run off to. He’s with a large black dog named Dakota.”</p>
<p>“Ran off you say?” Endeavor asked almost as if to himself.</p>
<p>Gran Torino glanced at him, ready to put the fire hero back in his place if he decided to mock him once more. His eyes widened slightly in surprise to see the number 2 hero thinking hard, his face scrunched up and his fingers running through his hair.</p>
<p>“Come on, I’m going to kill these creatures and then there’s an alleyway we should check out. My Shouto said something about checking up over there once I finished up with these enemies. He too ran off unexpectedly, it may be because that is where your brat is.”</p>
<p>Gran Torino ignored the jab at Midoriya and forced himself to think clearly. It made sense, what the flame hero said.</p>
<p>“Alright,” Emiko said, speaking for him. “Where is this alleyway you mentioned? We will start heading over there now while you knock out the rest of these enemies.”</p>
<p>Endeavor narrowed his eyes at her and grumbled something incomprehensible but stomped up to them anyway and scribbled the address down on a piece of half-burnt newspaper he found on the sidewalk to give to them.</p>
<p>“I’ll send some of my men your way as soon as I beat these monsters to a pulp,” Endeavor mumbled before rushing off down the street to where more screams and loud bangs could be heard, signifying the damage the Nomus were making.</p>
<p>“When I find that kid, I’m going to skin him alive,” Gran Torino said softly under his breath. He was very worried for the kid but knew he’d have to bust his balls later no matter how hurt he was for this kind of stunt.</p>
<p>“Don’t worry, he’ll be fine, and I’m sure there’s a very legitimate reason for all of this,” Emiko said in a weak attempt to calm him down.</p>
<p>“There better be,” Gran Torino said, activating his quirk to shoot off down the street as fast as he could.</p>
<p>Emiko chuckled humorlessly, her heart desperately hoping that her words held at least some truth to them. She didn’t know the boy well, but if he was able to break through the walls of an abused, cold, prickly Night Fury then he was definitely something special. Besides, he was kind and gentle and all of the interactions she did have with him often left her smiling. Someone who could spend so little time with others and still leave them smiling was someone she did not want to lose. Pressing her fingers to her own body so that the pads lit up a bright yellow, she allowed her quirk to course through her to disguise her true self. Once her form had shifted and changed until she resembled that of a small motorbike, she started her own engine and fired off after Gran Torino, using her speed to navigate the busy streets with ease as the two began their search for the boy and his dog.</p>
<p>_______________________</p>
<p>Dakota stood fast by Izuku’s side as he stood protectively over his fallen friend, her teeth bared, and her ears pinned at the villain in front of her. She knew what her mission was; she knew what she had to do, but her heart was thumping wildly in her chest at the thought. Her mission was to protect Izuku no matter what, to stay by his side and support him no matter what danger was present or where he ran off to. But she felt herself tensing as her eyes roved over the Hero Killer. He held a single katana, the blade dripping with blood and his face and body were covered in rags, all of which were different shades of red. His eyes narrowed through the eye slits of the rag across his face, making Dakota shiver as memories washed over her like a tidal wave. Izuku was far too immersed in the situation to notice her fear, his eyes focused on the villain in front of him while his fingers fumbled with the buttons on his phone to send his location out to anyone in the area. Dakota wanted to shake off the nerves, to focus on what she was needed to do the most, especially in a situation like this, but she couldn’t get rid of it. The image of the man in front of her, his abnormally long tongue reaching out to lick his lips, made her eyes widen and her breathing hitch. She had never met this man before but something about him reminded her violently of her past. Maybe it was his conviction or his chaotic energy, she didn’t know, but either way, she was going to have to face him without faltering. Growling just a bit louder, Dakota tried to drown out her fear and force herself to focus. Once again Izuku failed to notice her internal struggle, his own mind busy with trying to find a way to save both his best friend and the pro-hero, Native, who had been struck down earlier and was now lying helplessly in behind Iida.</p>
<p>Dakota could almost feel the tension radiating off of his as he activated his quirk and quickly crouched into a pouncing position, waiting for his first move so she could time her movements with his. Her heart was pounding in her chest so loudly she was surprised nobody in the alley could hear it, and her stomach kept twisting in knots, making her feel like she was going to vomit right there on the ground. Shaking her head a little to clear her mind, Dakota refocused her energy on making sure Izuku did not feel her nervousness, she did not need to affect him with her bullshit right now. He needed to focus and make it out of here alive with the other two people in this alley. She refused to watch him die. She refused to watch any of them die. Snarling viciously, Dakota leaped into the air just as Izuku did, her jaws open and her claws reaching outward to counter any attack Stain made towards her rider.</p>
<p>Stain slashed at Izuku with a small knife he procured in his free hand and made to slice Dakota with his long katana but missed both of them as Izuku and Dakota flawlessly worked together, Izuku sliding under Stain’s legs and Dakota leaping out of the way just far enough to avoid being cut but just close enough to cause a distraction. Stain whipped around to use his katana on Izuku behind him only to find Izuku had already jumped above him. Izuku threw his fist down at the Hero Killer and hit him with a solid 5% punch. Dakota leaped at Izuku and knocked him away from the knife that was flung in his direction at the last second as Stain crumpled to the ground. Izuku smiled at Dakota gratefully, ignoring Iida’s protests as he fought against the paralysis that kept him trapped. Standing, Izuku went to face Stain once more when Dakota’s panicked voice shot down the bond.</p>
<p>“Shit!” Dakota said. Izuku went to look around to see what the problem was only to find himself unable to move. His heart started to pound as he realized that the Hero Killer must’ve grazed him when he slid underneath him. “Izuku! He licked his blade, I think his quirk has something to do with consuming the blood rather than the cut itself!” Dakota shouted down the bond.</p>
<p>Facing Stain again, Dakota snared, her lip pulled back to reveal her gleaming teeth and her tail moving to curl protectively around Izuku’s frozen form. Stain groaned but managed to stand up again, tilting his katana so that the pale moonlight caught on the blade and flashed across his face, illuminating his features. His eyes scanned her entire body, making Dakota suppress a shiver, a curious glint shining in them. He tilted his head a little as he observed her for a moment longer before readjusting the blades in his hands and shifting his gaze to Izuku.</p>
<p>“I’ll give you some credit brat,” Stain grumbled. “You’re smarter than you look. You almost managed to avoid my blades but I managed to nick you just in time.”</p>
<p>“It’s not the cut,” Izuku ground out. “You tasted my blood, that’s what paralyzed me.”</p>
<p>Stain almost looked surprised for a minute before he schooled his features back into an evil smirk.</p>
<p>“Well well well, very good. You, unlike your friend here, are worthy of living. You deserve the title of hero because you only thought to save the people in this alley, even though one of them you don’t even know, and so you will live. But it is my duty to eradicate the false heroes of this society and that includes your friend here.”</p>
<p>“NO!” Izuku cries out but Stain merely ignores him as he moves over to where Iida was lying, ready to cut him down before moving onto Native. Dakota barks loudly and rushes forward, ignoring her instinct to stay beside her rider and moving to stand in the way of Stain’s attack. She galloped at the villain but her paws felt numb, her legs felt like jelly and she felt that weird aching sensation in her stomach again. It was as if everything was moving in slow motion, her eyes widening as Stain’s blade moved closer and closer to Iida’s exposed throat. Dakota leaped and was about to attack, the blade mere centimeters from Iida’s neck when suddenly a large blast of fire exploded and rushed for the Hero Killer, forcing the villain to leap away from his victim. Dakota curled into a ball and landed on the ground with a soft thump, using her back to break her fall and protect her face and throat. As soon as she hit the ground, she rolled and sprang up into a standing position, her eyes roving over the newest person standing at the entrance of the alleyway.</p>
<p>“You know Midoriya, you really should give more details in a situation like this, I was almost too late to stop this guy.”</p>
<p>Shouto Todoroki. Dakota had heard Izuku talk about him before but she had never met him as she had never been on the school grounds. The only one of Izuku’s classmates she knew personally was Ochako. But she had read the information Izuku had gathered on him and written in his hero journal. She also knew that he was one of the opponents Izuku had been forced to face during the Sports Festival. She had no idea what he was like but she did have a pretty solid idea of what his fighting style was like, along with bits and pieces of his past. The boy now stood with his phone held up in one hand, the small pin displaying Izuku’s location flashing on the screen.</p>
<p>“Great, another brat to get in my way,” Stain growled from where he stood at the back of the alleyway, his left hand holding his right arm where he had no doubt gotten burned.</p>
<p>“Sorry Todoroki, it was all I had time to send,” Izuku said through gritted teeth as he attempted to break free of Stain’s hold on him.</p>
<p>“It’s alright,” the half and half boy said, tapping his foot against the ground so that a huge wave of ice shot for the Hero Killer, the villain just barely managing to leap out of the way. Tapping his foot again, three walls of ice rose from the ground and lifted Izuku, Iida, and Native into the air and out of harm’s way. “Don’t worry, pro-heroes are on the way, we just need to hold our own until they arrive.”</p>
<p>“Good!” Izuku shouted. “Use my dog, Dakota! She’ll help you! Trust me!”</p>
<p>Todoroki glanced at Izuku quizzically just as Dakota stepped out from the shadows. She wasn’t a huge fan of working with other humans, still not trusting them very much, but if this was what Izuku needed, then this was what she was going to do. Todoroki turned to face her and raised an eyebrow but didn’t speak up against her. Dakota situated herself beside the icy-hot teen and moved back into a tense fighting stance, her teeth bared.</p>
<p>“Alright let’s do this then,” Todoroki whispers, still not entirely sure about the dog but decided against arguing, there was no time for that right now. “I’m sorry Hero Killer Stain, but I refuse to let you kill my friends, it’s time you face me now instead.”</p>
<p>Todoroki sent another wave of fire and ice at the Hero Killer as the villain leaped over the first wave of ice and charged at the pair. Stain dodged the attacks and moved to slash at Todoroki only for another wave of ice to force him back. Dakota did not move, not wanting to get in the way of Todoroki’s attacks, but stood her ground, ready to protect him or the other victims should Stain’s attacks come too close to hitting their mark.</p>
<p>“Todoroki!” Izuku suddenly yelled from his place on the pillar of ice, still attempting to fight against his frozen body. “Don’t let him taste your blood! That’s how he paralyzes you!”</p>
<p>Todoroki nodded. “Thanks, Midoriya, I’ll just use my quirk to keep my distance.”</p>
<p>Todoroki was just about to send out another sheet of ice when a blade came flying for his face. The icy-hot teen managed to move out of the way to avoid being killed but felt as the blade slashed through the skin on his face, slicing open his cheek. Stain rushed Todoroki only to be blocked by a large pillar of ice. A movement above his head made Todoroki look up. Stain’s katana was spinning above his head, the blade glinting in the moonlight as the spinning motion caused the metal to flash and gleam. Distracted, Stain suddenly launched at Todoroki, his tongue reaching to lick at the open wound. Eyes widening, Todoroki activated his quirk and immediately allowed the flames to envelop half of his face, the flames singeing the tip of Stain’s tongue. Todoroki prepared to send another wave of ice to distance himself from the villain but paused when, faster than he could react, Dakota caught Stain’s leg in her jaws and brought her head back to fling him back into the depths of the alleyway, a deep snarl bubbling out of her throat. For extra measure, Todoroki sent out a counter-attack of ice as soon as Dakota was clear from the line of fire, maintaining the distance between him and the villain.</p>
<p>Glancing down, Todoroki eyed the large black dog beside him, a thousand questions swirling around in his mind. Snapping his eyes back to where the Hero Killer was lying, Todoroki scolded himself. Later. Now was not the time for questions.</p>
<p>“Heh, you really are strong,” Stain said as he brought himself back up. “Not surprising considering you're the son of the number 2 hero, but still interesting nonetheless.”</p>
<p>Todoroki ignored the villain’s comment about his heritage and prepared to fight once more.</p>
<p>“T-Todoroki s-stop,” Iida cried weakly from where he was lying face-first on the pavement. “This isn’t y-your fight. You g-guys are getting hurt when you d-don’t have to. This is my fight. Go, save yourselves. Get out of here, I have to be the one to finish off the Hero Killer! I inherited the name Ingenium and it is my duty to avenge my brother!”</p>
<p>“Really?” Todoroki said as he and Dakota leaped out of the way of an incoming knife being flung at them. Todoroki sent another wall of ice to block the villain as he glanced at Iida’s pitiful form. “I never saw that look of vengeance plastered on Ingenium’s face.”</p>
<p>Todoroki meant to continue but was forced to turn all of his attention to the Hero Killer as the crazed man sliced through the wall of ice, chastising Todoroki for blocking his own view of his opponent. Faster than the eye could see, Stain flung three throwing knives at Todoroki. Two of them hit their mark, burying themselves in his left arm, his flames dying out to reveal the blood that pooled around the blades. Hissing in pain, a loud yelp brought Todoroki back into reality. The boy turned to see that the large black dog beside him had leaped in front of him when the Hero Killer had thrown the knives, the third knife, which had been aiming for Todoroki’s leg, lodged deep in her shoulder.</p>
<p>“DAKOTA!” Izuku’s loud scream echoed out but Todoroki barely even had time to look up as the Stain leaped over the top of him, ready to stab him from above. Todoroki lifted his arms to shield himself and closed his eyes, bracing for the immense pain that was sure to come. Until it didn’t. Opening his eyes, Todoroki saw Izuku standing near him, his hand smoking slightly from where he had used his power to tackle the Hero Killer away from them.</p>
<p>“Midoriya? You can move again!”</p>
<p>“Yeah,” Izuku said. “He must have some sort of time limit to his quirk.”</p>
<p>“But you were the last to be affected, if that were true, the two of us would be free as well,” Native said, drawing the attention of the two teens.</p>
<p>“He’s right,” Dakota said softly down the bond. “I think it has something to do with blood type.”</p>
<p>Izuku’s eyes widened.</p>
<p>“You’re right!” Izuku yelled, ignoring Todoroki’s look of confusion. “It must be blood type! Iida, Native, what’re your blood types? I’m type O.”</p>
<p>“I’m type A,” Iida said.</p>
<p>“I have type B,” Native groaned.</p>
<p>“Very good,” Stain suddenly spoke, attracting everyone’s attention once more. “Looks like you figured it out, well done.”</p>
<p>Dakota snarled at the sound of his voice, making the villain glance over at her again, his eyes flashing with something that looked disturbingly like recognition.</p>
<p>“Todoroki,” Izuku suddenly whispers.</p>
<p>“What?”</p>
<p>“I think we both know that there is no way we are getting out of here alive with both victims, not with the Hero Killer on our tail, we need to distract him and protect our friends until help arrives. You said pro-heroes are on their way, right? Let’s do this together until we can get some support.”</p>
<p>Todoroki glanced between Izuku, Stain, and the two victims. Both Iida and Native had already lost a lot of blood, if they didn’t hurry, they would die of blood loss anyway and everything would be all for naught. He was reluctant to follow Izuku, the situation was so unstable, anything could go wrong. His eyes traveled over to where Iida was still struggling against the curse on his body, trying desperately to move. He remembered worrying about Iida during the Sports Festival, how the look in his eyes reminded him so much of himself, and how he had felt after the incident with his mother. He remembered how clouded his judgment was until Izuku had finally slapped some sense into him with some well-placed words. It was risky, but he knew Izuku was right. Nodding his head once, Izuku and Todoroki tensed up into their fighting positions once more, Dakota crouching down beside them, her teeth bared as the blood trickled down from the wound on her shoulder. Todoroki saw Izuku glance at the wound and watched as his friend’s eyes darkened slightly at the sight.</p>
<p>Izuku launched at the Hero Killer, springing around the alleyway in his attempt to hit the villain all while maintaining his distance as much as he could. Dakota and Todoroki tried desperately to support him from behind but the wound on Dakota’s shoulder slowed her movements and Todoroki was starting to lose focus, the burning sensation on his cuts starting to distract him. Izuku went in to attack Stain one more time, his fist raised and Dakota by his side, her jaws parted to distract and disarm. Stain suddenly seemed to flare up, his intensity becoming overwhelming as he focused his sights on the black dog, his eyes flashing with a fire Dakota had seen many times in the eyes of hunters and villains. It was the fire of desire, the desire to capture and torture and gain. She had no idea how, and she had no idea why, but this villain, the Hero Killer Stain, knew who she was. The look in his eye distracted her just enough for him to flip the small knife in his free hand and slash it across her chest. Dakota yelped and ended up overshooting in her attack, flying past Stain and hitting the wall behind him.</p>
<p>“DAKOTA!” Izuku cried out for the second time during the attack; his focus was broken for just a split second as he watched his best friend crumble against the side of the building lining the alleyway. He turned his attention back to Stain, ready to counter-attack when all of a sudden he felt a searing pain rip through his leg. He collapsed to the ground and looked up just in time to see the Hero Killer lift both blades to his tongue and lick them languidly. Immediately, Izuku and Dakota felt their bodies freeze.</p>
<p>“Midoriya!” Todoroki called out as he dodged another blade that came soaring for him.</p>
<p>“Todoroki, please! This isn’t your fight! Go save yourself! Why would you sacrifice yourself for me? You guys are both so injured, just go! I need to strike him down myself!” Iida yelled from his place on the ground, his teeth gritted together and his forehead shining with sweat.</p>
<p>“For god's sake Ingenium! None of us are leaving either of you behind! Now stand up and take a good, long, proper look at who you want to be!” Todoroki snapped back, sending out a wall of ice to shove Stain back.</p>
<p>Stain snarled and slashed through the ice, aiming for another attack on Todoroki. The icy-hot teen leaped back and activated his quirk, allowing flames to explode on the left side of his body. Iida laid on the ground in shock, more than just Stain’s quirk keeping him frozen. Todoroki’s words shot through his system like a bullet, everything he’s ever known about being a hero coursing through his veins and pumping in his heart. He was right. He was pathetic. All this time, he had been so swallowed up by grief and the need for revenge that he forgot what it meant to help others. He glanced over at Native, the hero who had been at the end of Stain’s blade when he had first cornered the villain. He hadn’t even thought about him, the poor man had been cut down mercilessly and Iida hadn’t even paid him any mind, his judgment too clouded by the rage he felt towards Stain to think about being a hero. Shame washed over him as he looked back up to see Todoroki trying to defend all four of the fallen victims, Izuku and his dog desperately trying to fight off the paralysis while Native was slowly losing consciousness.</p>
<p>“Pathetic,” Iida growled to himself. “I’m so fucking pathetic.”</p>
<p>With a strained groan and a flash of pure determination to make it up to his friends, to undo the damage he had caused in his grief, Iida used all of his willpower to move as he felt the effects of Stain’s quirk wear off. With an angry grunt, Iida managed to move his hand.</p>
<p>Todoroki sent another combination of ice and fire attacks at the blood-sucking villain, his muscles straining as he set his quirk into motion yet again. He had managed to keep Stain away from him and his friends for long enough with his long-range attacks but for the first time since the beginning of the fight, Stain managed to get through the elements of his quirk. Todoroki’s eyes widened as the villain raised his sword, aiming right for Todoroki’s throat. </p>
<p>“You’re strong, kid, but you rely too much on your quirk and that is going to be your demise,” Stain growled.</p>
<p>This was it, he couldn’t get away this time, he could only watch as the blade got closer and closer to his flesh, fear rearing up in his chest as he realized exactly what was about to happen.</p>
<p>A loud, angry bellow followed by the sound of an engine firing to life cracked through the air as Iida tore out of the effects of the Bloodcurdle quirk and sent a kick fueled by Recipro Burst at Stain, shattering his katana and sending the villain flying away from his friend. Todoroki turned to stare at Iida, whose chest was heaving with sweat glistening on his skin along with the blood that seeped from his wounds, but his eyes seemed… clear.</p>
<p>“Todoroki, Midoriya,” Iida says, his voice gruff with pain. “I’m… I’m… I’m so sorry. I was being selfish before, I was only thinking about myself and the pain I felt rather than the pain of others around me, even those who were trying to console me, to help me. But I understand it now, what I was doing wrong. I know who I am and I know who I want to become. I refuse to have any more blood spilled for my sake.”</p>
<p>Stain let a slight groan escape from between his lips but immediately swayed any doubts about his strength by whirling around with a surprising amount of energy, his eyes flashing with unbridled fury.</p>
<p>“Oi oi oi oi!” Stain yelled out. “You know what I’ve learned? I’ve learned that a man’s character never changes. When you attacked me, you were only here for revenge, not caring, or even acknowledging the man I was in the middle of trying to kill. You are a false hero who prioritizes your own selfish desires, the cancer of this society, and I am here to correct that, to knock down these false heroes and create a world in which only the true heroes reign supreme!”</p>
<p>“Don’t listen to him, Iida!” Todoroki shouted. “He doesn’t know what he’s talking about, he’s just a psychopathic murderer who is trying to justify his crimes with political bullshit, you’re more than that.”</p>
<p>“No,” Iida said, his gaze hooded as he kept his eyes locked on Stain’s hunched form. “He’s absolutely right. I am a selfish man with very little reason to call myself a genuine hero. But now that I realize it I am here to change it.”</p>
<p>Turning his attention back to the Hero Killer, Iida’s eyes darkened with a look of determination rather than vengeance as they had been before.</p>
<p>“You may be right about me as a false hero but my brother, Ingenium was the most genuine hero out there. He knew what it meant to be a real hero, to care about others without any hint of selfishness. I may have a lot to learn to even remotely come close to the kind of hero he was, but if you think that means I’m going to give up so easily, you’re wrong. If I give up now, Ingenium will die, and I can not allow that to happen. I will carry on his name with pride and I will strive to be the hero he modeled for me for all these years. I refuse to surrender.”</p>
<p>Stain stared at him with a glare full of pure anger, his stance rigid, and his jaw set. Iida knew what was coming, and quickly turned to his friend.</p>
<p>“Todoroki, please, cool down my leg with your quirk.”</p>
<p>Todoroki moved to place his hand on Iida’s engines just as several blades came slicing through the air towards him. Immediately, Iida moved his body to shield his friend from the weapons, the knives sinking deep into his own flesh. Iida let out a pained grunt but forced himself to push past the pain, his teeth gritted. Looking up, Iida’s eyes widened as Stain moved to attack them again only for the villain to be intercepted by a large black dog. Dakota launched at him, Izuku by her side as they both collided with the villain. They did not remain there long, Dakota latching onto Izuku’s collar with her teeth and dragging him to a standing position to avoid being cut again. Izuku scrambled to follow his dog, jumping up onto one of Todoroki’s icy platforms and leaping for the Hero Killer. While Izuku and Dakota provided their distraction, Todoroki cooled down Iida’s leg, allowing the engine teen to move again. Leaning forward, Iida shot off after Izuku, his leg angling back as he prepared to kick out. Izuku grit his teeth as his cut leg protested in pain when he jumped up from the ice block, but he forced himself to focus, Dakota’s calming words down the bond combined with Todoroki’s shout of encouragement putting his mind back in the game. Lifting his fist back, Izuku punched Stain’s face at the same time Iida kicked his side with a Recipro fueled move that rendered the villain unconscious. All three of them landed on a large ice pillar but Stain crumpled to the ground when he hit the slippery substance, his feet sliding out from underneath him so that he landed with a soft thud. </p>
<p>Todoroki used his ice quirk to make a small ramp for his friends, allowing them to slide down with Stain’s unconscious form safely. He met them at the bottom, Dakota limping behind him, and the three of them used some rope to effectively tie up the villain. Stain had tried one final attempt to raise a knife weakly at Izuku but a quick nip to his wrist from Dakota coupled with a burst of flame on the face from Todoroki quickly disabled the villain for good.</p>
<p>The group, albeit disheveled and severely injured, left the alleyway alive. The pro-hero, Native, carried Izuku on his back while Todoroki dragged Stain behind him, ordering Iida to rest since his arm was just as damaged as Izuku’s leg was.</p>
<p>“You really don’t have to carry me, Native sir, I know you are injured too and I can walk on my own,” Izuku said.</p>
<p>“Oh no, you are in much worse shape than I am, this is the least I can do. You not only saved my life, but I was useless in that fight. If I can do this, it’ll help ease my conscience a little about the fact that three teenagers were severely harmed in a fight I wasn’t even a part of,” Native said, shaking his head and hoisting Izuku further up his back.</p>
<p>“You weren’t useless,” Izuku said incredulously. “Nobody could’ve won against Stain one on one with the kind of quirk he had. Thank you for carrying me, this is more than enough.”</p>
<p>Despite his heavily injured right arm, Iida allowed Dakota to lean against his left side, the wounds on her shoulder making her movements stiff and painful. Both he and Todoroki had a lot of questions for Midoriya about Dakota but he knew that the time for those would come later when they weren’t all bleeding and carrying an extremely dangerous villain.</p>
<p>The group finally made it out of the maze of alleyways and broke out into the main street, all of them panting and bleeding. Just as they were about to check the maps on their phones to figure out where to go, a loud voice mixed with anger and worry called out to them. Izuku closed his eyes as he attempted to prepare himself for the reprimanding that was to come as the footsteps of his mentor came closer and closer. Their whole group turned around to face Gran Torino and Emiko, who had shifted back into human form, along with some other small-time pro-heroes who were following behind the pair, all of them running to catch up to Izuku and his friends.</p>
<p>The first thing Gran Torino did when he reached Izuku after the boy had been gently placed on the ground by Native was propel his foot into Izuku’s face.</p>
<p>“Damn it, kid! You gave me a good scare there. I’m supposed to be taking care of you and you go running off even when I tell you to stay put!” Gran Torino eventually lifted his foot off of Izuku’s face and used his eyes to make sure the boy was still mostly alive with no fatal injuries. “Gods, I have no idea what I’m going to do with you, but I’m glad you’re alright.”</p>
<p>Izuku nodded gratefully, afraid to speak unless he said the wrong thing.</p>
<p>“And you,” Gran Torino said, whirling unexpectedly on Dakota. “You’re supposed to keep him from doing stupid shit like this! Not help him with it!” He did not hit Dakota, he knew better than that, but he did glare at her half-heartedly, also raking his gaze over her body for fatal injuries. Ignoring the confused looks of Iida, Todoroki, and Native from when he spoke to Dakota, Gran Torino went to stand up when the voice of one of Endeavor’s sidekicks made his blood run cold.</p>
<p>“Hey, is that… the Hero Killer Stain?”</p>
<p>Gran Torino’s eyes darted over to where the sidekick had motioned, to the figure behind Endeavor’s son. Moving swiftly, Gran Torino made his way over to the figure and felt his eyebrows rise up into his hair as he got close enough to make out the details on the figure’s face. It was definitely Stain alright.</p>
<p>“Holy shit,” Emiko whispered from beside Gran Torino, her eyes revealing the fact that she was impressed even when she tried to hide it. Gran Torino was shocked for a moment but managed to pull himself together. Clearing his throat and placing a hand on the ropes containing the villain, Gran Torino called out to the sidekicks and pro-heroes surrounding them to help him with the Hero Killer. The whole group moved as one to surround the villain, gently pushing Izuku, Native, Iida, Todoroki, and Dakota away from Stain.</p>
<p>“Come on, let’s get this guy put into police custody so we can- EVERYBODY GET DOWN!!!” Gran Torino yelled. He had been trying to give instructions to the other heroes on transporting Stain when he looked up and saw the giant winged Nomu, the last of the three destructive creatures, fly around the corner. The monster was obviously injured, a large, gaping hole sitting in the center of its forehead, but that didn’t seem to be hindering it as much as it should have, the creature flying closer and closer to them with its claws outstretched. Everyone managed to duck except for Izuku’s who’s stiff leg made it difficult to react quickly enough. Izuku let out a shocked yell as the beast grasped him in its claws and shot back up into the air, it’s wings pumping steadily despite its injury.</p>
<p>“Damn it! Midoriya!” Gran Torino yelled out, about ready to fire up his jets to fly after the pair. A loud roar stopped him, causing him to look over and widen his eyes in panic. Dakota, with a furious roar, ripped out of the effects of Emiko’s quirk, her dog form shifting and changing in record time to reveal her true dragon form. She was in the air in seconds, barely giving anyone any time to even look in her direction as she tackled the beast, latching onto it with her claws and ripping at its meek form with her sharp fangs, her wings beating the air rapidly as she fought with the Nomu. She curled her tail underneath her, using it to protect Izuku from the crossfire of their fighting as she tore at the monster, trying desperately to free her rider.</p>
<p>“Ah, it's bleeding!” One of the female heroes said from beside Gran Torino as a splash of the Nomu’s blood splattered across her cheek as it flew. Things were happening so fast that nobody had time to react, let alone assess the situation, which created just enough of a distraction for Stain to make his move. In the chaos, nobody had noticed that he had regained consciousness until his long tongue reached out and slithered across the female hero’s cheek, lapping up the Nomu’s blood that was splattered there. Before anyone could move, the Hero Killer made a break for it, his legs carrying him towards the rapidly falling Nomu, it’s muscles paralyzed. The ropes came loose as he ran, his hand reaching back for the final blade he kept hidden up his sleeve. His eyes narrowed on the form of Dakota, her sharp eyes watching him as all three of them fell towards the ground. So that's what she looked like. He had gotten a vague idea of what she was like from Shigaraki, but he had never seen her, even in a photo. Shigaraki had been very secretive about her but had told Stain about her during their meet up when he had explained some of his motivations for the crimes he committed. Stain knew he was a false villain just as much as most of these heroes were false but he couldn’t help but feel intrigued by her. She had been described by Shigaraki as bloodthirsty, uncontrollable, deadly, evil, and yet here she was, protecting a boy.</p>
<p>Izuku let out a surprised yelp as Stain leaped into the air and sank his knife deep into the Nomu’s brain, the creature dying instantly and falling to the ground, Izuku still clutched weakly in its claws. Dakota quickly rotated her body as they hit the ground, wrapping her wings around Izuku to make sure his flesh wasn’t scraped off on the pavement as they skidded to a stop. Dakota moved to grab Izuku and leap away when she felt the sharp edge of a blade press against her throat. She looked up to see Stain watching her, his gaze fixated on her brightly. She repressed the shiver that skittered down her spine, her mind frantically scrambling for a way to get Izuku out of here. Almost as if he were reading her mind, the Hero Killer leaned down and grabbed a hold of Izuku, ripping him from the dead clutches of the Nomu and ignoring Dakota’s warning growl. Stain then turned to face the front and took a step forward, Izuku still held tightly in his grasp, and his last sword still pointed at Dakota’s throat, the metal cutting slightly into her flesh.</p>
<p>The heroes at the far end of the street stood there in shock, none of them knowing what to do in this situation. Izuku and Dakota could see that Endeavor had shown up, but even the aggressive, bold number 2 hero wouldn’t come anywhere near the Hero Killer. Gran Torino was tense, waiting for a moment to swoop in and rescue Izuku but he had no idea when and if there was going to be a proper opening that wouldn’t get Izuku killed in the process. Gran Torino glanced over when he felt Rexy land beside him, the dragon finally having returned to his rider after assisting in putting out some of the fires in the city and saving people from falling to their deaths after the Nomu’s had carried them up to the top of buildings or hung them on the ends of spires. The heroes around them tensed when Rexy landed beside them, and one of them even flinched when they heard the dragon growl, but nobody moved, all of their attention focused on the villain staring back at them with a murderous aura.</p>
<p>Stain’s bandaged mask falls off his face as he takes another step forward despite his severe injuries. His eyes sparkled with a look of crazed fury and determination, his mouth hanging open. Izuku noticed Endeavor take a step forward, almost as if he was going to attack, but Gran Torino stopped him, his eyes wide as he placed a hand on the fire hero’s shoulder and shook his head. Stain let out a cold chuckle.</p>
<p>“This society is full of fakes,” Stain said. “It is these false heroes and pathetic villains that are the targets for my purge, all for the future of a just world.”</p>
<p>Stain takes another step forward, dragging Izuku along with him and keeping his blade pointed at the Night Fury behind him.</p>
<p>“The fake heroes of this society must be rectified, and the word ‘hero’ must be restored! None of you have what it takes to truly claim the title, ‘hero’! I dare you! I dare all of you, to try to stop me! I dare all of you fakes and pretenders to try to snuff me out like a candle flame! The only one who is worthy enough to kill me is ALL MIGHT!” Stain yelled, taking another step forward.</p>
<p>It was then that everything seemed to stop. Dakota’s eyes widened and Izuku gasped as the Hero Killer let out an almost surprised cough and stopped moving altogether. He had fallen unconscious from his injuries once more but he was still standing. Dakota hated to admit it, but she could see why this guy would be popular as a leader in the villain world. All of her life she had been forced to deal with Shigaraki and other immature villains with laughable motives and flimsy plans, but this man, this villain, was real. He knew what he wanted in life and she noted that if he had become a hero instead, that he probably would’ve been a rather good one. Dakota looked over at Izuku as Stain’s sword clattered to the ground, the tip falling away from her throat. She was about to move over to him when all of a sudden the sound of hurried footsteps made her look up. The heroes on the other side of the street were now rushing towards them, some of them aiming to save Izuku, some of them aiming to strike her. Many of them lacked weapons, but she could see it in their eyes. Izuku saw it too, and for the first time that night, he felt her true fear wash down the bond and through his system.</p>
<p>“Go, Dakota, go! I’ll be fine!” Izuku whispered in a hushed but alarmed voice. “Get out of here before more of them figure out who you are!”</p>
<p>She glanced back at them one more time before making eye contact with Izuku. She saw love and concern and pain swimming in them and it made her heart clench. She knew what would happen when they reached them. So far, only a few heroes had seen her true form, the dark of the night covering up the details and making it almost impossible to tell that she was a dragon, but she knew that once they reached her and realized what she was, they would think she was conspiring with the Hero Killer. They would probably capture her and never let her see Izuku ever again. They may even kill her, and if they didn’t then they would either imprison her or experiment on her to see exactly what they were dealing with. None of those options sounded very appealing but she hated to leave Izuku. He was safe and warm and kind and reminded her of home. On top of that, he was injured, and it was taking every fiber of her being to keep from snarling at the oncoming crowd even though she knew they wouldn’t hurt him, her protective instinct kicking into overdrive. But she knew what she had to do. Izuku sat up a bit and pushed on the part of her chest that was not injured, his warm hands sending the message loud and clear.</p>
<p>“Please go, and stay safe! You will not make it out of here if any more of them see you. The ones who saw you may not even know what you are yet but I can tell they are skeptical, they will blame you for everything. And that’s if they even see you first! I saw that look in Stain’s eye, he recognized you for some reason. You don’t have to explain yourself if you know anything about this, but that look scared me. If he knows you, then whatever followers he has, if any, will probably know you too and come looking for you when they hear you were a part of his downfall. I promise I’ll be fine, Gran Torino will take care of me. Now go!”</p>
<p>Dakota whimpered slightly and pressed her nose against his face affectionately before taking off running, avoiding using her wings at the moment to arouse suspicion and keeping close to the buildings lining the streets, using her black scales to melt into the shadows. Gran Torino got to Izuku first, using his jet quirk to scoop up his intern and transport him away from both Stain and the dead Nomu, both of which were being properly handled as the other heroes descended upon the scene. Gran Torino allowed the boy to lean on him and started to walk back down the street in silence. Izuku’s distressed gaze was all Gran Torino needed to see to understand that the boy had sent Dakota off for her own safety. He thought he had seen something like a shadow move away from Izuku before they arrived but he hadn’t been sure until he saw the look in Izuku’s eyes and noticed that the beast was nowhere to be found.</p>
<p>“Don’t worry so much about her, she’ll be alright,” Gran Torino whispered as they walked back to the group together.</p>
<p>“I know, but I can’t help it. She wants to protect me but she is injured and being hunted. I just don’t know if I trust her to stay away, she always puts my needs before her own.”</p>
<p>“I know, kid, but you just gotta trust her. She knows your in good hands and just so long as you don’t pull anymore stupid, life-threatening stunts, she should stay away until the coast is clear.”</p>
<p>Izuku nodded but worry kept gnawing at his gut. He honestly didn’t know if it was his or hers or both that he was feeling. As soon as the pair rejoined the group, three of the heroes rushed up to them.</p>
<p>“Are you alright, kid?”</p>
<p>“Yeah, what was that thing?”</p>
<p>“It looked like a dragon but I couldn’t be sure, maybe it was another Nomu? Could you even tell what it was? I know you were right in the middle of the action so it must’ve been hard to see but maybe you got a glimpse of it?”</p>
<p>“You’re lucky to be alive right now! If that was a dragon, that thing would have ripped you to shreds! Maybe it didn’t because all of us were here?”</p>
<p>“Oi!” Gran Torino yelled, cutting off the questions of the three heroes. “Stop harassing the boy! He’s obviously hurt! I don’t know what that beast was but I’m almost inclined to say it saved him. If it meant to kill him, it would’ve done so! Now, please, give the boy some space and help me get him to the hospital, along with the other people who were attacked.”</p>
<p>Two of the heroes fell silent but one of them spoke up one last time, making Gran Torino see red.</p>
<p>“Oh, that’s rich, coming from the dragon lover.”</p>
<p>“Oh? You think that just because I have a dragon by my side that I’m creating false evidence in the case of this boy’s injury? Is this kid dead? No, which means that whatever creature it was, didn’t kill him, and didn’t have any intention of killing him. I have no idea if it was a dragon or not, but whatever it was, was trying to get this boy out of the situation with that winged monster. You can argue with me about the specifics all day long but that is what happened and if you can’t accept that then you are either stupid, blind, or both.”</p>
<p>The two heroes glared at one another but the opposing hero finally shut his mouth and turned away to help the other heroes load Stain into the specific hold the police had brought for him. Izuku released a sigh as soon as the offending hero left, his heart still fluttering.</p>
<p>“You’ll get used to it, kid,” Gran Torino said. “It sucks but until the people of this world realize that the facts they’ve been fed for years are wrong, this is how it is. At least we heroes don’t get arrested for having dragons anymore since the government declared bonding as an uncontrollable event on the human’s part. Just so long as you have the proper license and just so long as your dragon doesn’t cause any unnecessary damage during missions, you won’t be arrested for having one.”</p>
<p>Izuku nodded but still felt uneasy, the scorn in the man’s voice resonating through him even though it wasn’t even directed at him. He glanced over to where his friends were being loaded into an ambulance, the same one Gran Torino was leading him to and knew he’d have some explaining to do. There was no way they didn’t see Dakota in her true form, she had been right beside them when Izuku was carried off. The thought made him grit his teeth and set his jaw in determination. He had managed to show Ochako the true nature of dragons, he could do it with his other two close friends as well. And if he could do that, he could change the minds of others too. Izuku always knew that he’d stand up for his dragon and her right to live, but now as he thought about the conversation he was going to have to have once they had been healed, he set a goal in his mind. To be the first to start a wave of pro-dragon sentiment. He wasn’t just going to become the world’s best hero with Dakota by his side, he was going to do it and have her be fully accepted for who she is. He was going to do it and watch as many other heroes around him work with dragons to make the world a better place. He knew it was a stretch, but he was willing to make the leap, to work for it. If it guaranteed him a safe and somewhat peaceful future with his dragon, then he would do anything to make it come true.</p>
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<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Rendevous</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Wow it's been a while for this story! I am so sorry for the wait, I had some major writer's block when it came to this story for a while and I did not want to release a shitty chapter just because my brain wasn't working properly 😂. Regardless, I finally finished this chapter and I am so excited for you guys to finally get to read it! I made it really nice and long so hopefully that makes up for the extended wait time. Thank you so much for the continued support and patience! Now that I am finally out of this rut, maybe now I can go back releasing these chapters in a more timely fashion. As always, hope you guys are staying safe and stay tuned for more exciting works coming your way! Enjoy!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Dakota was scared. Well, that was an understatement, she was downright terrified. She had managed to stay hidden at night when the cover of darkness melted with her black scales and allowed her to walk almost freely amongst the city without anyone seeing her. But now, with the sun high in the sky, Dakota didn’t know what to do. She normally would’ve taken the form of the black dog she always appeared as, but without Emiko around, she was stuck in her large dragon form, causing some major issues. She moved very slowly and stayed in the very deep corners of the many alleyways in the city, keeping to the darkness as much as possible.</p><p>Dakota raised her head slightly to get a whiff of the air around her, desperately trying to pinpoint the nearest forest but to no avail. Snorting quietly in frustration, Dakota glanced around, her eyes darting nervously in every direction before she continued on.</p><p>She knew it was practical for her to leave Izuku’s side, he was well taken care of and she most certainly would’ve been forcefully taken from him if the other heroes had seen her, but she felt lonely and afraid without him by her side. She huffed silently to herself as she thought of the irony of it all. She had gone from hating humans with every fiber of her being to being lost without one. She shook her head and fought the doggy style smile that tried to appear on her face as she thought of the plucky little boy and his heart of gold.</p><p>Continuing to move through the shadows, Dakota paused every few moments to listen for the sound of someone approaching. She knew she could cloak her scales so that she could blend into her surroundings, seemingly turning invisible, but she also knew that to do that trick she would have to produce a massive fireball, the heat allowing her to transform. If she wanted to avoid attracting any unwanted attention, that was not an option.</p><p>As she made her way through the labyrinth of passageways, a flash of bright color caught her eye. Stopping just to glance at the strange splash of color, Dakota peered through the space between the buildings to see a large screen with a woman and a man sitting at a large desk, talking while flashing images up beside them. Izuku had told her about these before, he had said they were devices used to display the news to everyone on the streets at once. Dakota’s eyes widened as she took in the photo of Stain they had thrown onto the screen, the woman beside the photo gesturing wildly as she spoke. Dakota couldn’t hear what they were saying and she couldn’t read, but she could make a pretty good guess at what they were talking about.</p><p>The Hero Killer Stain.</p><p>She shivered slightly as she remembered the look he gave her, almost like he recognized her. She knew for a fact that she didn’t know him but it was possible Shigaraki told him somehow. She didn’t even know if they were connected but it seemed like it with the appearance of the Nomus in Hosu. But why would Shigaraki share information about her? She knew what he was like, and despite enjoying shoving his privileges in the faces of other villains and heroes alike, she had escaped from him, he had no reason to bring her up since he lost her. That would only make him look bad.</p><p>Shaking her head and turning her focus back on the goal at hand, Dakota continued forward and reset her priorities on finding a way out of the city and back to the forest where she knew she would be safe.</p><p>________________________</p><p>Izuku shot up with a gasp, the fading remnants of his dream lingering just enough to make his eyes dart around nervously. Taking a deep breath, Izuku schooled himself, telling himself that he was in a hospital recovering, not in that dingy alley with the Hero Killer towering over him, ready to cut him down.</p><p>“Whoa, Midoriya are you alright?” Iida asked from where he was sitting in the bed beside Izuku’s.</p><p>“Oh, yeah! I’m alright, it just took me a minute to realize we weren’t still in that alley with Stain,” Izuku said, yawning and rubbing the back of his neck with his hand, scratching the hair at the base of his head in an attempt to distract himself.</p><p>Iida nodded in understanding and Todoroki mumbled something incomprehensible in agreement from the corner of the room, making Izuku glance in his direction. The half and half boy was leaning against the wall, his bandaged arms crossed and his eyes closed. Izuku watched him for a minute before glancing at Iida, the air thick with unanswered questions. He knew they saw Dakota. Neither of them had said anything to him yet but he was sure the two had probably talked about it together while he was asleep. His heart started to race as he thought about what to say to them. Was he supposed to lie and pretend he didn’t know what they were talking about? Was he supposed to admit everything and then sit by while they told the pro-heroes? Was he supposed to just watch his best friend be dragged away from him? Izuku was so lost in his thoughts he failed to notice that both of his friends were watching him, his increased labored breathing and red face catching their attention.</p><p>“Um, Midoriya?” Iida asked softly, causing Izuku to freeze and glance at them, his eyes flicking between the two other boys in front of him.</p><p>“Y-Yeah?”</p><p>“Is everything alright?”</p><p>Izuku met Iida’s gaze at the question. He wasn’t sure if Iida was stalling in bringing up the elephant in the room or if he had no intention of bringing it up at all. Izuku swallowed hard and opened his mouth to speak when Todoroki cut across him.</p><p>“What are you, Midoriya?”</p><p>“I’m sorry?”</p><p>“Don’t play dumb, we saw that beast thing fly up to save you. Are you some kind of shapeshifter like Ryuku, the dragoon hero? Or are you some sort of whisperer of murderous creatures?” Todoroki asked sharply, his harsh gaze never leaving Izuku’s.</p><p>Izuku clenched his fists subconsciously, forcing himself to rein in the anger that rose at his insulting words. Of course, they would see Dakota as some sort of vicious beast, that was all they had ever been taught about dragons. Closing his eyes and taking a deep breath, Izuku calmed himself down before speaking.</p><p>“Her name is Dakota-”</p><p>“It has a name?” Todoroki interrupted.</p><p>“Yes, she has a name, and she is nowhere near as evil as you think she is,” Izuku snapped before they could cut him off again.</p><p>Silence met his declaration before Iida cleared his throat softly.</p><p>“What do you mean, not as evil? It’s a dragon, they’ve been known ever since they were discovered to kill and feast on humans, tearing families apart and burning cities to the ground. We have a dragon trapping trade route for a reason, Midoriya.”</p><p>Izuku grit his teeth at the thought of dragon trappers getting their filthy hands on his best friend, wrangling her to the ground and skinning her to sell off to the market. He fought the tears that surfaced at the thought of her teeth, eyes, scales, claws, and wings hanging out for display at some black market, the light long gone from her loving gaze.</p><p>“Listen, I thought all of that too once, I thought dragons were bloodthirsty killers too, but now that I’ve spent some time around them I’ve come to realize just how wrong the world is,” Izuku said.</p><p>“But you were attacked by a dragon!” Todoroki shouted. “How is that not confirming our beliefs?”</p><p>“She didn’t attack me! I found her in the woods, half-dead and bleeding, wounds everywhere, her wings were torn, her sides sliced open, her tongue hanging out with blood dripping from the end. She was trapped and dying. I was about to kill her, thinking it was possibly some elaborate scheme to get me close to her when in reality she was genuinely just a victim. She saved me from the very trappers who tried to kill her when they came after me, thinking I was trying to steal their money,” Izuku said.</p><p>Iida and Todoroki glanced at each other skeptically, their brows furrowed in confusion.</p><p>“I promise, Dakota is the best thing to ever happen to me. She is sweet, kind, gentle, loving, and selfless. She has had such a troubled past when it comes to humans but she still treats everyone as equally as possible. She is my best friend and she would never hurt me, ever,” Izuku rambled on, his tears starting to overflow as his emotions became too much for him to hold back.</p><p>“I love her, I love her so much and I’m worried about her. She is out there, without a disguise or friend to help her, probably being hunted right at this moment. She saved my life in that alleyway with Stain and the Nomu, risking revealing herself to everyone and being shot down just to protect me. She is not what you guys think she is. She is smart, so very smart, and she would never harm anyone unless she absolutely had to. She even saved your lives!” Izuku nearly shouted in his anguish.</p><p>Todoroki’s and Iida’s eyes widened at that.</p><p>“What do you mean? We did not see that dragon until it appeared out of nowhere to attack the Nomu,” Todoroki said quietly.</p><p>Izuku shook his head, his messy mop of hair swinging from side to side wildly.</p><p>“That’s because she was disguised for her protection. But she was with us and she saved you from a few blows from Stain without hesitation.”</p><p>When his friends still looked confused, Izuku sighed and clasped his hands in his lap.</p><p>“The dog.”</p><p>“What?” Iida asked.</p><p>“The black dog,” Izuku said.</p><p>	At those words, Todoroki’s mouth dropped open, realization setting in.</p><p>	“You mean to say that…, the big black wolf-looking dog is actually…?”</p><p>	“Yeah,” Izuku said.</p><p>	Todoroki thought back to how that dog had taken stab wounds for him even though they had never met before, how she had not hesitated to help save their friends and stop Stain before he killed anyone else. She had stood by them during the entire fight with unwavering courage, waiting to protect them at even the slightest hint of danger coming from their foe. That selfless animal was actually a… dragon?</p><p>	Todoroki was just about to say something in response when the door to their hospital room opened behind them, causing all three boys to look up. </p><p>	Standing in the doorway was the Chief of Police, Kenji Tsuragamae, a very tall, broad shouldered man with the face of a spotted dog, his ears flopping and his tongue hanging from his mouth in a relaxed pant. All three boys started at the sight of the police chief, immediately breaking off from their previous conversation. Following Kenji, was Gran Torino and Manual, both pro heroes filing silently behind the chief, their faces set as they laid eyes on their interns.</p><p>	One look at the group filing into the room and Izuku knew they were in for a long conversation, his mind breaking away from thoughts of Dakota for the first time since she had left.</p><p>	______________________________</p><p>	By the time the week ended and the students of Class 1-A returned to UA, Izuku was more than a little panicked at the lack of contact with his dragon. He had not seen nor heard from Dakota for several days, even ignoring his attempts to contact her through the bond, leaving him with nothing more than a heavy silence in his head.</p><p>	Izuku stared off into space as his friends discussed their internships with each other, his mind way too focused on his missing friend to partake in the conversations around him. His head was slightly bowed, his gaze fixed on his desk as he desperately tried to think of ways to search for her without seeming suspicious. </p><p>Ever since she had revealed herself to attack the Nomu, pro-heroes and the police force alike had been keeping an eye out for a large beast. Nobody knew for sure if she was a dragon, but the rising tensions from the attack on Hosu were making people anxious for some results. Capturing and killing a dragon would serve as the perfect way to comfort and motivate the public, which had led to the increased patrols and even private hunting parties as the authorities scoured the city for any sign of strange activity. News of these increased security measures had sent Izuku’s anxiety levels skyhigh, his frazzled brain desperately trying to think of a solution. Gods, he was so worried about her, he knew she must be terrified, and the lack of contact between them was making him want to vomit.</p><p>A gentle hand on his shoulder brought him back out of his reverie, his dull green eyes, glazed over with a sheen of unshed tears, looking up to see Ochako standing beside him, her serious gaze telling him she knew exactly how he was feeling. He managed a small smile for her. Ochako had been amazing, helping him brainstorm ways to help Dakota out, comforting him when he broke down, even sending out Legoshi to search the fringes of the city for any sign of the famed Night Fury.</p><p>Ochako squeezed his shoulder in response to his smile, a silent promise to continue to help him think of ideas as soon as class was over. Izuku felt his mood lift slightly at her touch, her voice soothing over his frantic thoughts as she turned to talk about her internship with the rest of the class like the others had done. With her presence calming him down, Izuku was able to at least appear less dead-looking as he turned his body to pay attention to what Ochako was saying, her voice like silk as she described her work with Gunhead animatedly, her arm coming out to punch them air in excitement as she retold of the battle training she had gone through. Izuku’s smile got wider as she told them about Gunhead’s surprisingly cuddly personality, and how he had happily taken her in, joking with her while showing her how to disarm someone. It was an interesting combination of traits, a fact that made Izuku chuckle a little when Ochako told of her mentor gushing over a puppy in the street, practically dancing when the owner nervously said he could pet it.</p><p>By the time their lectures on future exams and news on the upcoming camp they were supposed to go on started, Izuku was feeling more focused, able to put away some of his anxiety and turn it into faith in his dragon. By the time the class was over and everyone was filing out of the room, Izuku was feeling much better, his confidence increasing as he thought of more ways to look for his best friend, excited to go over them with Ochako and Legoshi.</p><p>Izuku was just about to walk out of the classroom when the sound of a cold, monotone voice made his stomach drop like a stone, his steps immediately ceasing until he stumbled into a halt in the classroom doorway, most of his fellow classmates already on their way to the dorms. Only Ochako remained with him, also immediately stopping when she noticed that Izuku was no longer beside her.</p><p>“Midoriya, can we talk for a minute?” Todoroki asked, leaning against the far wall of the classroom with his arms crossed.</p><p>Izuku turned around and noticed that Iida was also in the room, despite not having said a word yet, his glasses glinting in the light of the classroom as he peered at Izuku.</p><p>“Uraraka, you can head back, we just want to talk to him about something that happened in Hosu really quick,” Iida muttered from his spot in the back corner.</p><p>Ochako immediately pushed her way past Izuku, moving into the classroom and leaning against the doorframe, her arms crossed to mirror Todoroki as she stared her friends down.</p><p>“Oi, we said-”</p><p>“Cut the bullshit, Todoroki,” Ochako responded, making Izuku’s eyes go wide and Iida gasp in shock. Todoroki merely arched an eyebrow in her direction.</p><p>“What’s with the aggression?”</p><p>“I know this isn’t about Hosu. I don’t know how, I don’t know when, but I know you guys know about Dakota and are probably here to talk about her. Otherwise, you would not have tried to get Deku alone,” Ochako said.</p><p>“So you do know, then,” Todoroki said back, his eyes appraising her.</p><p>“Yes, she does,” Izuku said suddenly, turning around to face them and moving up to stand by Ochako’s side. “She’s known for a long time now. She’s the only one at this school that I’ve told.”</p><p>Todoroki was about to speak again when Iida cut him off, his whole body tense as he took a step towards his two closest friends.</p><p>“Is what he says, true?” Iida asked.</p><p>Ochako didn’t even have to ask to know what Iida wanted to know. She already knew about their conversation in the hospital, Izuku having told her about it when they were trying to come up with ways to contact the lost dragon. She had not brought up the topic with Todoroki or Iida, wanting to wait and see how they would react before revealing that she was a part of Izuku’s secret.</p><p>“Yes,” Ochako said without hesitation. “I’ll admit, just like Izuku said about himself, at first, I thought the same things you did. I thought dragons were bloodthirsty and horrific and deserved to die.”</p><p>Ochako noticed Izuku flinch slightly beside her but she ignored it and kept going. She knew he hated hearing people say things so violent about the giant reptilian beasts, but she needed to show her friends that she genuinely did feel no love towards them in the beginning. She needed to show them how wrong she was.</p><p>“But then Izuku came sprinting up to me one night after I had accidentally discovered Dakota while they were training together, begging me to help him when she had been captured by some thugs in the area. He revealed to me later that the whole reason she had been caught in the first place was to help Izuku convince me of her innocence, she was even willing to let me ride on her back to do so. At the time though, I did not know this, but Izuku looked so panicked, so afraid, for his friend, in a way I had never seen before, so against my better judgement, I went to help him. We managed to free her and the other dragons from the trapping site and I realized as I worked with him, just how wrong our society is about these creatures.”</p><p>“What do you mean?” Todoroki asked skeptically, frowning at her words.</p><p>“I mean, when I was helping to free them, instead of flying away immediately, many of them stayed back to protect me and Deku from the men who whirled on us, intent on killing us for freeing the dragons they had caught. One dragon in particular saved me several times and even let me ride on his back to escape.”</p><p>Izuku swallowed hard beside Ochako as he noticed Todoroki and Iida glance at each other. Everything was riding on whether or not their friends believed them. If they decided to tell someone of authority about Izuku and Ochako and their connection to their dragons, they would be done for. They would most likely be forced to separate from their dragons, maybe even forced to watch as they were slaughtered or taken away to be sold.</p><p>“I-If you want e-even more p-proof, here’s this…,” Izuku said nervously, pulling his phone out of his pocket with a trembling hand. Turning the screen around to face them, Izuku handed the phone off to Todoroki, who squinted at the photo of Izuku and Ochako, both of them curled up in their dragon’s embrace, fast asleep.</p><p>“Who took this?” Iida asked, glancing at the photo in Todoroki’s hand.</p><p>“A man who is helping train us. He’s a friend of ours who has been teaching us how to interact with our dragons. He’s kind of surly but otherwise kind. He took this of us one evening when he found us asleep and wanted to use it to tease us.”</p><p>Todoroki and Iida both looked closely at the photo. It was obvious Ochako and Izuku were comfortable, both teens completely relaxed in their sleep, but they also noticed how the dragons looked. The black dragon on the left was fast asleep with Izuku, her wings relaxed and gently covering her rider’s body. The huge purple dragon on the right, the one curled up with Ochako, was awake, his yellow eyes watching the sleeping heroine carefully, but even in the photo they could see no malice in his gaze, the dragon merely watching out for her as Ochako rested against his scales, one of her hands even clutching at his wing in her sleep.</p><p>Todoroki passed the phone back to Izuku as silence filled the room. Izuku bit at his bottom lip as he pocketed the phone, anxious to hear their thoughts. Ochako waited patiently on the outside, her arms still crossed, but in her mind, she too was nervously waiting for their reply, her heart pounding in her chest.</p><p>All four students stared each other down until Iida finally spoke, breaking the ice with a single question.</p><p>“Do you know where she is right now?”</p><p>Izuku shook his head sadly, his hair swinging in front of his eyes as he moved. Iida was surprised to see the amount of concern and depression that filled Izuku’s eyes as he thought about his lost dragon, the look in Izuku’s eyes making Iida wince. He hated seeing his friend look so defeated. Clearing his throat, the engine hero took a deep breath and looked Ochako in the eye as he spoke again.</p><p>“How can we help?”</p><p>Izuku’s head shot up in shock, his eyes shifting from Iida’s gaze to Todoroki, unsure if he had genuinely heard them correctly.</p><p>“What…?”</p><p>“How can we help?” Todoroki spoke this time, albeit a little quieter than Iida.</p><p>When neither Izuku nor Ochako responded, both of them still frozen in shock, Todoroki sighed.</p><p>“Listen, Iida and I have been talking ever since we had that conversation in the hospital. We are still unsure about everything, but you’ve given a compelling enough case that I just don’t think you’re lying to us. Also, although I still don’t think she is as good as you say she is, neither of us can ignore the fact that your giant lizard did save us from Stain multiple times. If it weren’t for her, I’d have twice the number of stab wounds,” Todoroki said sincerely, leveling his gaze at both of his friends as he talked.</p><p>“On top of all of that,” Iida said, “we are heroes. I really messed up when I was attacked by Stain, I lost sight of who I am, who I want to be, what it means to be a hero and I discovered that I am not as much of a hero as I thought I was. She may be a dragon, one who I still don’t trust yet, but she obviously means a lot to you, both of you, and I can not ignore that. What kind of hero would I be if I once again used an angry grudge to determine whether or not I should intervene? I’m going to do things right this time. She helped us and you care about her in a way that I have never seen from you, Midoriya. I want to help. Also, just as Todoroki said, she got hurt for us, she must be having trouble getting around which will get her hunted down faster. She probably needs medical attention as quickly as possible.”</p><p>Izuku and Ochako looked at each other before smiling, tears pricking at Izuku’s eyes at his friends’ thoughtful words. Wiping his face with his sleeve, Izuku smiled at them, his teeth flashing brightly. For the first time since the attack in Hosu, Izuku felt happy.</p><p>“Thank you both so much.”</p><p>“So? What’s the plan?” Todoroki asked, brushing off Izuku’s gratitude with a wave of his hand.</p><p>__________________________</p><p>Izuku glanced back to see Todoroki, Iida, and Ochako walking together, just slightly behind him, watching the ground for signs of disturbances in the environment or even blood. They had determined that it was safe enough to go out to search from Dakota as a group since a group of teenagers walking around on a Friday night was not that out of the ordinary. It would’ve been much more suspicious with just Izuku and Ochako, which was why the pair had waited to go looking for her in the beginning, not wanting to risk drawing even more attention to the wanted beast.</p><p>A small smile rode across Izuku’s face at the sight of his closest friends by his side, his heart clenching at the thought of them helping him despite their doubts and fears. Ochako noticed his small smile and flashed one back at him when his gaze met hers, happiness and pride shining in her chocolate hues. Izuku’s smile widened but he looked away quickly as a blush spread across his face. Izuku trained his eyes on the ground once more to avoid having anyone notice his flushed face when something small and red caught his eye.</p><p>Stopping quickly, Izuku squatted down before turning back to smile at his friends apologetically.</p><p>“Shoe just came untied! Sorry guys,” Izuku said, code for, ‘I’ve found something’. </p><p>Ochako and Iida nodded in understanding and continued walking forward while pretending to chat, secretly scouting the area for more clues. Todoroki hung by Izuku, claiming to wait for him while actually keeping an eye out for anyone who might be watching them. Izuku nodded at Todoroki’s scripted explanation for stopping and examined the ground as efficiently as he could, not wanting to remain in one place for too long.</p><p>Izuku quickly figured out it was a small splatter of blood. He didn’t know how or why, but in his heart he knew it was Dakota’s. He figured it had something to do with his bond to her, allowing him to immediately identify her in any way, shape, or form, but Izuku pushed the thought to the back of his mind for now, making a mental note to ask Haruka and Fumihiro about it later.</p><p>Standing up, Izuku smiled brightly at Todoroki.</p><p>“All done!”</p><p>Izuku knew he was being overly cheery as Todoroki nodded and the two started walking again, but his nerves combined with the desperate need to see his friend again was making it harder to remain calm.</p><p>“You really do care a lot about her, don’t you, Midoriya?” Todoroki asked, breaking Izuku out of his thoughts.</p><p>Izuku looked at his friend for a minute, who continued to look at the ground as they walked, refusing to make eye contact with Izuku. Bringing his own gaze back to the street they were currently on, making their way closer to the edge of town, Izuku nodded slowly.</p><p>“Yeah, I do. She’s the most incredible creature I’ve ever met. She’s so kind and so loyal. She cares about all walks of life despite her trouble with humans in the past. She has the biggest heart, it just happens to be surrounded by scary claws, sharp teeth, and rough scales.”</p><p>Todoroki didn’t respond but Izuku could’ve sworn the half and half hero narrowed his eyes on the street, as if he were subconsciously searching harder for the dragon he was still so unsure about. The act made Izuku’s heart warm. He really did have such amazing friends, he could already tell that they were all going to turn out to be fantastic heroes.</p><p>Suddenly, Izuku heard Ochako speak to Iida, her words making his heart jolt.</p><p>“Hey Iida, wanna race me to that abandoned shopping center over there?”</p><p>Iida smirked at her and pretended to stretch.</p><p>“Sure thing Uraraka, I don’t know if I can beat you though,” Iida joked, firing up the engines in his legs for emphasis.</p><p>Ochako laughed, and although the interaction seemed completely normal, if not silly and stupid, Izuku knew what Ochako was really saying. She had found something.</p><p>The pair in front of them suddenly took off after counting down from three, Iida pretending to run much slower than Ochako, who took off at a sprint towards the ghostly looking shopping center. Glancing at each other, Izuku and Todoroki paused for only a moment before they too broke out into a run, calling for their friends to wait up.</p><p>Izuku's heart was pounding by the time they reached the shopping center, fear and excitement coursing through his veins. Gods, he hoped she was alright, he wouldn’t accept it any other way.</p><p>Ochako jogged over to Izuku once he and Todoroki had caught up to her and Iida, panting lightly.</p><p>“Ha! I beat you!” Ochako mocked, lightly punching his arm. Another code phrase. It meant, ‘follow me’.</p><p>Huffing a laugh, Izuku shoved her shoulder affectionately.</p><p>“You sure did!”</p><p>“Come on, why don’t we go rest on that bench over there? Outside of the old grocery store? I’m tired and could use the rest.”</p><p>Izuku nodded and followed Ochako as she turned and made her way over to the rickety old bench out in front of the ramshackle grocery store, the dreariness of the building causing Izuku to shiver involuntarily despite the warm night air.</p><p>Just as they were about to reach the bench, Ochako touched Izuku’s wrist and leaned close to his ear.</p><p>“In there…”</p><p>Izuku tapped her wrist back in gratitude and moved away from her, glancing around him before slipping into the grocery store. His friends slipped in one by one behind him when they heard Izuku’s low gasp. The group paused with wide eyes as they surveyed the floor of the shop, which was covered in claw marks, the shelves knocked over with their expired contents laying all over the floor. Mixed in with everything was streaks of drying blood, some of it even congealed into small puddles on the floor.</p><p>“O-Ochako, how did you know this was here?” Izuku asked quietly.</p><p>“I didn’t, I just saw Legoshi give me the signal to come over here.”</p><p>“He’s here!?” Izuku asked, whirling around to look at her incredulously.</p><p>“Well, yeah… he wanted to help and when he figured out we were going out to search tonight, he said he wanted to come.”</p><p>“How did he find out we were leaving?”</p><p>“Because I told him,” a voice from the shadows said, making the whole group jump in fright, Izuku even letting out a shriek at the sudden sound.</p><p>“Emiko! Don’t fucking do that!” Ochako said breathily, her hand placed over her heart as she recovered from the shock.</p><p>“Sorry!” The sweet woman said, suddenly shrinking back a little. I totally forgot you guys didn’t know I was there, I didn’t mean to scare you.”</p><p>Izuku shook his head and swallowed hard before turning his attention back to the shifter.</p><p>“How did you know about our plan?”</p><p>“Well because I was in the room with you when you were discussing it.”</p><p>“What?”</p><p>Emiko rubbed the back of her neck in embarrassment, her dark skin flushing a little.</p><p>“Well… I was given permission from Gran Torino to keep an eye on you ever since Dakota and you were separated. He knew you’d be struggling and he didn’t want you doing anything stupid or reckless.”</p><p>“How come we didn’t see you in the room, then?” Todoroki asked suspiciously.</p><p>“My quirk,” Emiko said, holding up her hand so her fingers could flash yellow for them. “I can transform anything I touch, including myself, into anything I want, just so long as I know the exact measurements of the thing or organism I want to change something into. I was one of the books on EraserHead’s desk when you guys had your confrontation in his room after class.”</p><p>“So where is Legoshi, then?” Izuku asked.</p><p>As if on cue, a handsome, silver, Weimaraner dog came prancing into the room, making a beeline for Ochako, who squealed happily and dove to the floor, wrapping her arms around the dog’s neck.</p><p>Izuku smiled at the dog, who gave a goofy, very doggy esc smile in return, his tail wagging. The young power hero then turned his attention back to the mess on the floor of the shop, his heart dropping like a stone at the sight of the mess, almost as if looking away from it had allowed him to convince himself it wasn’t real.</p><p>“Do you know where she is, Emiko? Is she here?”</p><p>Emiko shook her head, her eyes losing their joyful glow a bit.</p><p>“No, I just found this. She was obviously here, but I don’t know where she went after this. That’s okay though!” Emiko said, injecting a bit more optimism back into her voice. “This is a good start! We might be able to track her from here.”</p><p>Izuku nodded and made his way to the back of the store, where he could see a back door leading out of the shopping center. Careful to avoid stepping on any of the mess, Izuku weaved through the fallen shelves and soiled food to the back door, eager to see if any of it tracked outside and to give himself  a chance to get some fresh air, he could feel his throat closing up with more tears and the smell of blood mixed with the soiled food was making him want to gag.</p><p>Wrestling the door open from where it had rusted shut, Izuku took a step outside and sighed as the warm air dispelled the disgusting odors from his face. He knew she was around here somewhere, he just needed to figure out where.</p><p>The rest of his friends eventually followed Izuku outside, everyone scouring the area for signs. Anything, footprints, a missing scale, a splatter of blood, anything to lead them to her next trail. Legoshi had his nose to the ground, his short tail wagging as he tracked, Ochako standing right beside him as she too looked around.</p><p>Izuku was just about ready to call it a night before his mother called him to frantically ask where he was when a low growl permeated the air, making Izuku stand ramrod straight. Legoshi immediately lifted his nose from the ground, his eyes trained towards a line of nearby trees. The silver dog was completely still for a few seconds before his tail began to wag rapidly, repeatedly slapping Ochako in the leg. A loud bark sounded as Legoshi bounded forward, streaming for the trees.</p><p>Izuku’s eyes widened as a familiar dark dragon came out of the trees like a living piece of shadow, her eyes twinkling like the stars in a bright night sky.</p><p>Izuku lost control, releasing a loud wail as he broke into a sprint, aiming right for the Night Fury. Dakota also broke into a run, although even from this distance, Izuku could see she was limping heavily.</p><p>“Dakota!” Izuku heard Ochako call out in an ecstatic squeal, her pounding footsteps sounding right behind him as they both tore for the dragon in front of them.</p><p>Izuku felt his heart soar, with both his emotions and Dakota’s, his pace increasing as he found he could not wait a moment longer to be with his beloved dragon.</p><p>Finally they both met in the middle, Izuku colliding with his dragon so that she rolled backwards with him to avoid hurting him with the rough scales covering her chest. Izuku laughed as they rolled until he was flat on his back and Dakota was curled around him, her tail thumping the ground with loud slaps.</p><p>Ochako followed suit soon after, Dakota catching the gravity girl in a big bear hug, both of her paws resting on Ochako’s upper back as she dragged the young heroine into her chest. Ochako giggled happily as she attempted to wrap her arms around the big dragon, her face nuzzling Dakota’s neck just as the Night Fury gently nuzzled Ochako’s chest.</p><p>The dragon finally released her and Izuku sat up, wrapping his arms around her face as she pressed up into his body, her eyes closed and a very loud purring sound coming from her throat as she relished in the feeling of him with her once more.</p><p>Once Izuku had parted from her, Legoshi barked excitedly and Dakota leaned down to nuzzle the silver dog, both of their tails wagging as more loud purring filled the air.</p><p>“Oh, Dakota, I missed you so much!” Izuku said, running his hand along the small fins on her head, his face breaking into a watery smile. “I’m so glad you’re alright!”</p><p>“Yeah,” Dakota said down the bond, some of her purrs even tittering down the bond as well, making Izuku shiver at the strange yet no unwelcome feeling. “I really missed you too, Izuku. I was worried about you.”</p><p>“You were worried about me!?” Izuku said incredulously, ignoring the strange looks he was getting from Todoroki and Iida, who were still standing awkwardly off to the side, shifting uncomfortably. “I was worried about you!”</p><p>Izuku suddenly seemed to remember her wounds and immediately set to work moving around her, his hands lightly moving over her scales and clicking his tongue when he made it to her soft wing membranes, gently inspecting her injuries.</p><p>“Um…, Midoriya?”</p><p>Izuku stopped his assessment of Dakota and looked up to see Iida glancing between him and Dakota nervously.</p><p>Dakota felt his nervous energy and tensed a little, ready to bolt if he tried to attack her. Izuku placed a hand on her shoulder to comfort her, sending a quick coo down the bond to soothe her. Moving so he stood a little bit in front of her but still off to the side so he wasn’t blocking her, Izuku motioned towards his two friends.</p><p>“Come here, she won’t hurt you.”</p><p>The two boys hesitated a little before slowly approaching the dragon, their doubts starting to filter away as they got closer. If she had wanted to kill them, she would’ve done so already, right?</p><p>When his friends were close enough, Izuku smiled at them and held up his hand.</p><p>“Here, hold out your hand like this, and then let her come to you.”</p><p>Todoroki and Iida both did as they were told, both of them watching the dragon warily as she slowly rose from her sitting position on the ground and prowled towards them, her wings tucked in tight to her body.</p><p>Dakota paused for a moment longer when she was just a few inches from their fingertips, feeling a bolt of reassurance shoot down the bond from Izuku. She fought the doggy style smile that threatened to appear on her face at the thought of her loving rider trying to give her confidence and instead focused on the two palms in front of her nose. </p><p>Glancing down at the two boys in front of her, the two who had fought Stain by her side, the two boys who obviously meant a lot to Izuku as close friends, and leaned forward, closing her eyes as she pressed her muzzle into their skin.</p><p>Todoroki gasped slightly and Iida jumped a little when she made contact but soon both relaxed into her touch. Her scales were smoother, softer than either of them had expected, and she was very warm. She eventually moved from their hands and opened her eyes, her startling blue gaze warm with wary acceptance of them.</p><p>Iida stared at his palm in awe once Dakota had moved away, but Todoroki leaned forward and gently placed his hand against her snout again, ignoring the flash of fear mixed with anger that flitted in her eyes at his forward touch. He had to remind himself that she was just wary because of her past experience. Taking a deep breath, Todoroki met her gaze with an equally intense one as he spoke.</p><p>“Thank you, for saving my life.”</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>I know there are quite a few unanswered questions from this chapter but don't worry! I plan on explaining those in the next chapter! Sorry if anything is a little confusing, I promise, I will clear everything up in the next few chapters. Thanks for reading! Love you guys and have an amazing day. ❤️</p>
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